


What Happens in Vegas

by NatashaCole



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Accidental Marriage, Drinking, Eventual Smut, F/M, Mistakes, Smut, Swearing, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-30
Updated: 2019-01-28
Packaged: 2019-04-16 00:01:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 34
Words: 130,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14152257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NatashaCole/pseuds/NatashaCole
Summary: Reader is experiencing her very first Supernatural convention. As a new character on the show, she’s unfamiliar with her fellow cast-mates and the con circuit in general. Maybe Vegas wasn’t the smartest place to start; because now she’s in caught up in a precarious situation with Rob, who she may have a little crush on. One drunken night, a one-night stand, and a split decision later; Reader wakes up to learn that she and Rob are married.





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is by no means original. I’ve just always loved the “accidental marriage” trope so I figured I’d give it a shot. Anywho, the chances of getting legitimately married in Vegas while drunk are pretty slim since you have to be of sound mind to do so. However, it is super easy to get married in Vegas at any time.  
> There are going to be many overused tropes here besides the whole marriage thing and it’s all very cliche; fair warning.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Summary: Reader is painfully shy, especially when she’s thrown into a convention weekend for the first time and barely knows anyone. Day one of Vegas con is overwhelming so far; and a night out is about to become a blur.

You were nervous for your first convention. That was an understatement. You had worked on the show for a few episodes this season, and had only met the leads as well as some of the ladies. You never expected to be asked to join the circuit, and had even considered turning the idea down until your friends managed to convince you that you would enjoy it.

Your first convention and it happened to be in Las Vegas, the longest stop of the entire tour.

It was early Thursday morning when you arrived to the city. You quickly went to your hotel, discarded your luggage and freshened up before you were whisked away to the hotel where the convention was being held at. You tried to steel your nerves, hoping that the girls were at least there since you didn’t know anyone else who was involved in these things. You knew you had a full day of ops and autos and a panel; you just wanted to talk to someone who could give you pointers on how to handle this.

When you arrived at the venue, your handler for the weekend greeted you and directed you to follow her.

“I’ll show you to the greenroom,” she said. “it’s where you and everyone else will spend most of your time. I was told this is your first con.”

“Yeah,” you replied as you hurried after her. “I’m Y/N, by the way.”

“I know who you are,” she chuckled. “I’m Rachel. I’ll be the one you bug when you need something.”

“Thank you. I’m sure I’ll need all the help I can get.”

“You’ll be fine. The fans are great, the entire thing is pretty chill, and your costars are the greatest. You’ll have a lot of people backing you here.”

She led you into a large convention room and you immediately glanced around at the few people who were occupying it. You didn’t know any of them, but you did spot Kim rather quickly. Relieved, you made your way to her and she hugged you as she greeted you. You didn’t know her well; but you had worked on a couple of episodes with her. At least there was someone that you were familiar with.

“How exciting,” she grinned as she looked at you. “Your first convention, and it’s Vegas. We are going to have so much fun.”

“I’m just so glad you’re here. I thought I would be stuck at this thing with people I don’t know.”

“Nah, Briana and Ruth will be here today. We won’t see Misha, Jared, and Jensen until later in the weekend.”

“Well, at least three people I know,” you chuckled.

“That’s right, you haven’t ever met anyone else. Not everyone is here yet; but come on. I’ll introduce you to Rich and the band.”

You nervously followed her as she led the way. You were just not very good at meeting new people; you were awkward and you knew it. You barely knew even her, but having spent a lot of time on set together, you had finally learned to be less awkward around her at least.

She stopped short at a table where a group of men were gathered. They each looked up at you, smiling.

“Guys, this is the new girl, Y/N,” Kim began. “This is her first ever convention, so be nice.”

You swallowed hard, wondering why the warning was even necessary. She began to point to each of the men as she listed off their names.

“Billy, Steve, Rich, Rob, and Mike,” she said. The guys waved to you and you mentally recited their names as you looked at each of them, trying to remember who was who. You were bad at names. Generally, it took some time for you to place names with faces; and knowing that you still hadn’t even met everyone who would attend this weekend made your stomach turn. There would be many more names to try to learn and the idea of even trying stressed you out.

“Hi,” you mumbled. “So who does what? Who’s who?”

“Sorry,” one of the men said. He stood up and reached his hand out to you and you shook it softly. “I’m Rich, I played Gabriel many moons ago. I kinda host the whole thing this weekend.” He pointed to another man; one that you sort of had to do a double take with and force yourself not to blush. He was cute and he looked at you with bright blue eyes and a sweet smile. “That’s Robbie; he’s God, or so he tells himself. He sings in the band. These other jerks are the band.”

You smiled as the guys rolled their eyes at Rich, realizing that this group probably made a habit out of giving each other a hard time.

“I watched your first episode,” Rob said as he also stood up to shake your hand. “You’re fantastic. I think you’ll fit right in.”

“I hope so,” you replied blushing. You had been fairly cool with the other guys, but the fact that Rob was looking at you and smiling sent your nerves into overdrive. “I’ve never done one of these before and from what I hear, it’s a regular thing.”

“Oh yeah, we go all over the states,” Rich replied. “You’ll have fun. This family is great.”

“I’m pretty nervous,” you admitted. “I’ve never had to do a panel before.”

“Really?” Rob began. “You are literally the first panelist of the day.”

“Don’t remind me,” you laughed nervously.

“Hey, no worries,” he said, smiling at you.” Rich and I will walk you through it.”

“Yeah, we can go over it now if you’re ready.”

“Thanks, that would be really helpful.”

You joined the guys, taking a seat as Kim checked to make sure you good without her. The two men went right into explaining how the day would go. They’d introduce you, play a song as you got on stage, and leave you to answering questions. It sounded easy enough, aside from the whole answering peoples questions bit. Perhaps being painfully shy wasn’t the best personality trait in this business, but you were never shy when you were on set filming while pretending to be someone else. Right now, the idea of answering questions honestly in front of these fans was a scary thought; you were shaking enough as it was just sitting here talking to people that you didn’t know.

“What if they ask something that I can’t answer?” You asked, panicked as you thought of everything that could go wrong. “What if I accidentally give away spoilers?”

“Hey,” Rob smiled as he placed a hand on your arm. “You’re gonna be great. You’re part of this family now, no one is going to let you crash and burn.”

* * *

When time rolled around for your panel, you were still nervous. Even the little pep talks from your coworkers and the tips they had given you didn’t really help.

“Be gentle with her, she’s a con virgin and you’re about to pop her cherry.”

You heard Rich introduce you and you felt yourself blush immediately. No one had ever introduced you in this way, and you weren’t sure how to take it. Regardless, you stepped onto the stage with a smile as the band began to play. When they finished the short intro, Rob gave your hand an encouraging squeeze as they left you to it. Again, your stomach flipped at the contact, which you quickly ignored so that you could focus on your panel. The combination of first-time nerves and the butterflies in your stomach that Rob caused were certainly not what you wanted to be feeling right now.

You rambled through the first part of your panel; completely aware that this is what you were doing. You could hear yourself speaking a mile a minute, talking about the most random things that popped into your head, but you couldn’t stop yourself. You were fairly certain that you hadn’t answered the question at all.

When you finally slowed down, you looked to the side of the stage, hopeful that what you had just said was good enough. You were more than halfway into this, you just had to be, and you felt worse. You were sweating and stuttering and you could feel your hands shaking as you held the microphone up to your face. You couldn’t even sit in the chair provided for you, and standing only made you want to pace back and forth nervously. You felt like you were going to faint.

You glanced to the other side of the stage, wishing that you didn’t have to take more questions. You knew you had to, so you steeled your pride and forced yourself to continue.

Just as a young girl began to ask her question; you noticed the guys sneak their way onto the stage behind you. This meant that your panel was over. All you had to do was finish up the final question.

“We know this is your first convention, so I assume this is your first time meeting a lot of the other actors who do the cons,” the girl began as you nervously watched the guys set up beside you. “I was just wondering how it’s been meeting them and who you’ve gotten along with the best so far.”

“Oh, well, I literally showed up a few hours ago,” you laughed. “Seriously, I’ve known these guys for a few hours.” You motioned to Rich and the band. “But, I think I’m going to get along with everyone just fine. So far, they’ve been so great and friendly. They’re all so close, and I’m just happy to get the chance to maybe be a part of that someday.”

“You’re part of the family, whether you like it or not,” Rich cut in, smiling sweetly at you.

“I’ll count that as a good thing,” you laughed.

“Well, how was Y/N for her very first panel?” Rich continued. He motioned to the audience and they all cheered. For a brief moment you felt a lot less nervous and a lot more accepted.

“And, Y/N,” you heard Rob join in, “how did Las Vegas treat you?”

“They were fantastic,” you replied as you smiled in his direction. “I’m looking forward to the rest of the weekend.”

“Alright ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Y/N Y/L/N, she’ll be here all weekend. Come say hi to her, get your picture with her, treat her as you would any other member of this family.”

You waved to the audience as they cheered for you and turned to pass off your microphone to Rich as the band played you off.

In the grand scheme of things, it really hadn’t been so bad. The questions were mellow, the audience was kind; and despite your nervousness and anxiety, it seemed to have gone well.

* * *

They day went on and you spent some time in the greenroom; chatting with the other actors and getting to know them a little more. You didn’t see Rich or the band too often; it seemed as if they worked a lot throughout the day. Occasionally though, you had a chance to  converse with one of them and just getting to the point of being able to talk casually with them helped immensely as you still worked at trying to find your footing here.

Photo ops and autographs were easier; you were a bit more relaxed at those. The best part about it all was getting to meet fans who seemed to be thrilled to have you on the con circuit. By the time the day ended, you were feeling a lot better and a lot happier to be here.

“You joining us?” Kim asked as she hurried to catch up with you. You were headed down the hallway to catch your ride back to your hotel.

“For what?”

“Dinner and booze,” she replied.

“Really?”

“Hell yeah, like we said, you’re a part of this now.”

“Great. Dinner sounds great.” You turned to your handler, giving her a look as if to tell her that you didn’t need to go back to your hotel after all. 

* * *

You didn’t know how you had ended up here. This wasn’t really like you. You figured your new friends were a lot more persuasive than you originally thought.

Dinner had been nice. It gave you a chance to get to know some of them a bit more. However, drinks had started even then. You weren’t much of a drinker usually. Sometimes you’d have wine with dinner, or a beer or two on a night out. By this point, now that you were swaying on the barstool as you closed one eye in an attempt to focus on Briana who was standing in front of you, you realized that you might have overdone it.

“D’you know what?” You asked her as you reached over to grasp onto her arm. “I like you. I like all of you. I like everyone in this bar.”

She chuckled at you as she held onto your arm, probably in an attempt to keep you from falling off your chair.

“We like you too,” she replied. “But, you probably should have warned us that you’re a lightweight.”

“Am not,” you said defensively.

“Don’t feel too bad. Rob seems to be just as drunk.” She glanced over in his direction not far from where the two of you were sitting.

“Am I drunk?” You slurred.

“Yeah, you’re pretty drunk. It probably wasn’t a good idea to buy you and Rob all those shots.”

“Did you make me drunk?”

Briana cringed slightly, feeling sort of bad for the fact that she and the others had definitely, possibly made it a point to get the two of you drunk on purpose. It wasn’t their intent to get you this wasted though.

“I just know how nervous you get about things,” she said. “He’s the same way. We could tell the two of you were kinda checking each other out, so we thought we’d help.”

Even in your drunken haze, you blushed. She wasn’t wrong. You thought he was cute when you met him; and although you couldn’t help but look at him, you certainly wouldn’t have the guts to do anything about it.

Right now though, you were filled with your fair share of liquid courage and the encouraging words of your friend.

“He’s cute,” you giggled. “I’m gonna go talk to him.”

You stood up, stumbling slightly as Briana helped to steady you.

“Normally, I would advise against it when you’re like this,” she began, “but this is going to be hilarious.”

You did make your way to Rob, who seemed to be thrilled to see you. You tried to make casual conversation with him, but even you understood that you were too drunk to do so. You could also tell that he was certainly not sober. It was a strange feeling; usually being so in control of yourself and nervous around people, but realizing now that you were a lot more outgoing and forward, and completely not in control of yourself.

You wished that the feeling would disappear. You couldn’t even remember at what point you were suddenly wasted. You vaguely remembered the drinks and shots that kept appearing in front of you and Rob as you sat together at dinner. You recalled the way the drinks kept coming when you inexplicably ended up at the bar with everyone. The girls had explained how a few drinks would make it easier for you to actually talk to him. You were obvious. They knew that you thought he was cute, they were just helping.

When you realized that conversation was not happening with him, you made your next move. They had been right about the alcohol loosening you up enough to talk to him; and now you had enough in your system to be a lot more brave about other things too.

At one point while he was rambling about something, you were no longer listening. Instead, you very much wanted to kiss him right now. This was something you would never do upon just barely meeting someone, but for some reason, the need was there.

You moved in to kiss him, already feeling your nose bump against his awkwardly. You went for it though, pressing your mouth hard against his, teeth hitting his in what eventually turned into an awkward, sloppy mess. The knowledge that this was extremely unattractive didn’t stop you though. Just the idea that you were kissing him had you excited. He was cute and he was nice to you. You just hoped you’d remember this in the morning.

It was all a blur after a while. You remembered more making out. You remembered talking drunkenly with him most of the night. You recalled how you had been the one to lean in and whisper in his ear that you were ready to leave, and you were ready to leave with him. You had focused on the way those blue eyes lit up when he realized he was about to get lucky, that amazing smile forming on his lips. He swayed and stuttered out an agreement as he grabbed your hand.

“We’re gonna go,” Rob explained as some of the other approached the two of you. He gripped hard onto your hand as if he didn’t want to lose you in the bar.

“Oh, okay,” Rich said, his voice concerned. “You sure that’s a good idea?”

“It’s okay,” Kim cut in. “I called them a cab. It’s probably best if they go back now anyway.”

“Yeah, but maybe it’s not a good idea for them to go together, what with all that making out that they’ve been doing.”

“Hey,” Rob shouted, pointing angrily at his friend. “Do not fuck this up for me.”

“Relax,” Kim laughed. “They’re adults. Besides, something tells me that they will pass out the minute they make it back to the hotel.”

“You know what,” Ruth chimed in suddenly. She had been quiet for most of the night. “I’ll head back with them. I’m ready for bed, and someone should make sure they make it to their rooms.”

“Really? You’ll do that?” Rich asked.

“Of course I will,” she smiled. “Come on you two troublemakers.”

“Only if you make sure we both get back to my room,” you replied, looking over at Rob with what was supposed to be a look of seduction.

“Okay, sure,” she said reaching for you and Rob, guiding you as the two of you stumbled with her out of the bar.

“Sleep it off, kids,” Rich shouted after the two of you with a laugh. “And don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader wakes up the next morning with a massive headache. Unfortunately, it might not just be from the hangover. Rob is in her bed, there are pictures on the internet, and then there’s the wedding rings… Now, if only they remembered what happened last night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m pretty sure you can’t have the paperwork processed and official this fast. It’s for fic purposes, okay. Also, I’m switching POV’s between Reader and Rob because you all seem to like that so much. Enjoy!

**Reader’s POV**

You woke up groaning, immediately squeezing your eyes tight as a small sliver of daylight shined on you from the partially opened curtains. Your head pounded as you slowly opened your eyes to take in your surroundings. You glanced around, taking note of the fact that at least you had made it back to your own room last night; however, the room was still spinning as you tried to hold back the need to vomit. You couldn’t remember the last time you had a hangover quite like this and you could feel it hit you all at once. In fact, you considered that you might, in fact, still be drunk.

You suddenly became aware of the fact that someone was here with you. You stared down at the arm draped over you, moving your eyes up until they settled on Rob lying next to you. You were both naked and you definitely knew that you had slept together last night. You watched him for a moment; frowning at the way he was still passed out, snoring lightly. It’s not that you suddenly regretted last night, it was pretty obvious that you had found the man attractive right away. You just wished that maybe you hadn’t jumped into bed with him so quickly, and you also wished that you hadn’t been so drunk last night.

The memories of last night faded in and out. You remembered flirting with him. You recalled the drinks and the fact that you knew you were overdoing it. The alcohol was what had made you brave enough to make a move on him. You remembered the kiss and the way you had led him back to your room. It was no surprise that you were waking up with him in your bed; you just wished you could remember exactly what had happened.

You reached for your phone to check the time. You knew you both had to be at the con today and you worried that you hadn’t set an alarm. You were relieved to see that it was still early; however, your phone was blown up with notifications.

Text messages, Twitter, Instagram… every app glared at you with unread messages and you frowned upon seeing them. You weren’t normally this popular on social platforms. You assumed the notifications had more to do with your first day at convention, so you ignored those for now in favor of the impressive number of text messages you had waiting for you.

There were quite a few, so you settled on a series of messages from Briana first.

_Bri: Did you really fucking GET MARRIED?!!!_

You squinted at the last text she had sent you, ignoring the rest of her series of messages. You had to have read that wrong. You typed a response best you could, hoping that this was a typo.

_You: what?_

As soon as you sent the text she was typing back.

_Bri: U AND ROB??!!! What the hell? This is a joke, right?_

_You: I don’t know what you’re talking about…_

_Bri: maybe refer to the series of Tweets that u both shared last night??!!!_

You held your breath for a moment before opening the app. There were hundreds of notifications that you felt like you didn’t want to read. Instead, you clicked on your profile to see what she was talking about.

There, clear as day, you were greeted by a string of tweets that you had apparently posted.

They were mostly pictures. Pictures of you and Rob. Some, you could tell were drunken selfies that you had taken; others seemed to be taken by someone with a steadier hand. In all of them, you were rather close to Rob, both of you grinning like idiots, obviously two sheets to the wind. In a couple of the pics, the two of you were kissing.

The most embarrassing and concerning part of the tweets were the way you had attempted to tag Rob in them, failing miserably; and making even worse attempts at hashtags.

It took you a long time to even notice where these pics had been taken. When you did take a moment to check out the background, you could tell that it was obviously in a cheesy wedding chapel of some sort, and you were definitely wearing what looked like a wedding dress.

You quickly went to Rob’s Twitter, only to find more pictures that were similar. At least he had managed to type legible, but it didn’t help you feel better when most of his posts used the words “married" and “wife.”

You glanced over to a still sleeping Rob, half tempted to wake him right now. Instead, you went back to your convo with Briana.

_You: wtf?!_

_Bri: please tell me its a joke._

_You: I don’t even know what to say_

_Bri: How could anyone be that drunk? If you are messing with me, I swear to god…_

You ignored her last text, praying to God that it was a joke, but not even knowing if it was.

You glanced over to Rob again, suddenly feeling angry that he was sleeping at a time like this.

“Hey,” you said as you shook his arm. He groaned slightly, turning so that he could press his face into his pillow. You tried again, this time shaking him a bit harder. “Wake up.”

He grumbled and turned to face you, squinting as if he too were in pain.

“Holy shit,” he groaned. “Why do I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck?”

Unable to hold back your anger with him for what could have possibly happened last night, you shoved him away from you and scurried to cover yourself so that he couldn’t see you naked. You very suddenly felt shy. You knew that you had slept with the man, but the fact that you didn’t remember details made you feel humiliated right now.

“Ow! What the hell?” He asked, looking at you as if you had just insulted him.

“What happened last night?” You spat out, trying not to shout as your head still throbbed from your hangover.

“What do you think happened?” He asked. “You’re the one who practically dragged me to your room. Don’t act surprised.”

“No, I know. That’s not what I mean.”

“What then?”

“You should probably check your social media,” you answered.

He gave you a confused look while he rifled through the items on the nightstand until he found his phone. You gave him some time to look through his phone, waiting impatiently until it finally hit him.

“What. The. Fuck?” He said slowly, punctuation each word with wide eyes as he scanned the screen. “We didn’t…” his eyes darted up to meet yours, desperate as he waited for you to assure him that it was a joke.

You shrugged, now panicked as you realized that perhaps his memories of last night were as blank as your own.

“It’s everywhere,” you mumbled. “I have texts messages and notifications from everyone.”

“Me too.”

“We posted pictures all over the place…”

“It was a joke right? I mean, we were drunk and messing around.”

“I don’t know. I remember drinking and we kissed, but there’s nothing else. Please tell me that you remember something.”

“I don’t really….”

“Oh god.”

“It’s fine,” he said quickly, shaking his head and making a face as if even he didn’t believe himself. “There’s no way this is a real thing. Obviously we were messing around. They don’t actually let drunk people marry each other.”

“Really?”

“Of course, we just did it for the laughs, right?”

“I don’t know.”

“Hey, have you always worn a wedding band?” He asked suddenly.

You looked down at your hand to notice a ring on your finger that had never been there before.

“No.”

He put his own hand up to show a matching ring on his own finger.

“Are you serious?” You shouted, really panicked now.

“This can’t be happening,” he mumbled, just as concerned as you were. He made a quick movement to jump out of your bed, searching for his clothes as he stumbled slightly.

“Fuck,” he groaned as he held his hand to his head, “how much did I drink last night?”

You remembered now that both of you had been wasted by the time you left the bar last night. You struggled to recall any moment in which the two of you could have done anything regrettable, but you couldn’t.

Both of your phones were still buzzing as more notifications came through. You wondered if you could just ignore it all; maybe delete the pictures and pretend that nothing had happened, at least until you knew for sure what had happened. Rob picked his phone back up after he had haphazardly dressed himself.

“Rich is texting me,” he explained. “Why is he yelling at me in caps?”

“Briana did the same to me,” you replied.

“What the fuck did we do, Y/N?”

You shook your head, unable to answer that. There had to be some reasonable explanation to this. Maybe Rob was right. Maybe you had staged the pictures for a joke. That didn’t really explain the rings on your fingers and the fact that he was now holding up what looked like a wedding dress that he had found while searching the floor for his clothing. He raised a brow at you as he held it up for you to see.

“Where would you even get this in the middle of the night?”

“I hardly think that that’s the biggest question you should have right now,” you replied.

“You’re right,” he said, discarding the dress back to the floor. “Okay, let’s calm down and think. See if we can remember what happened exactly.”

“I can’t,” you said. “I have no memory after making out with you in the bar and asking you to come back to my room.”

“I remember the cab ride, vaguely. I remember coming into the hotel, but I don’t actually remember coming into the room with you.”

“Okay, so that’s it?” You replied, panicked again. “Neither of us even remember being on the freaking Strip at a wedding chapel?”

“Jesus,” he breathed out as he ran a hand through his hair.

“What do we do? What do we do if we don’t even remember what we did?” You felt tears well up in your eyes. The idea that you could have done something this big and have no recollection of it scared you. There was no comfort in seeing the way that Rob seemed to be feeling the same panic.

“Look, okay, we’ll figure this out,” he said, trying to remain calm. “The pictures, do any of them have the name of the place we were at in the background or anything?”

“I’ll check,” you said as you opened your camera roll. You scrolled through a bunch of pictures, cringing at them and feeling grateful that you at least had the decency not to accidentally post some of the worst ones. It took a minute, but eventually, you found what you needed.

“Oh, here,” you announced, showing him the photo. “Cupid’s Wedding Chapel.”

“Okay, great. I’ll go over there today and just double check with them that it was a joke.”

“Okay,” you breathed out. “Now, what do we do about the fact that our accounts are filled with pictures of what looks to be a very real wedding? What if we did do something stupid?”

“We didn’t,” he promised you, “but, we did kinda throw it out there and it looks like everyone thinks we’re married. Maybe we should just go with it for now; at least until I find out what happened.”

“Really, is that a good idea?”

“Well, would you rather admit that we possibly did something this stupid; or would you rather just go with it until we know for sure if we were that stupid?”

“I would rather not go with anything. I’m pretty sure our coworkers won’t believe that we just decided to get married. They will know it was mistake because they know how drunk we were. How can we pretend with them?”

“Oh trust me, there’s no escaping this with them. They’re going to tear me apart when we see them. But, we can at least not make a bigger deal out of it publicly until we know exactly what happened. I’m just saying, if we right away admit that this might have happened and we don’t even remember it, this is going to look really fucking bad for both of us.”

“So, what do we do? We really just admit that we got married and act like it’s no big deal? I don’t even know you.”

Rob shrugged in frustration. “You got a better idea?”

“No…”

“Let’s just stop acting so freaked out for a minute until I go to the place and straighten this out.”

“I can’t not freak out.”

“We’re actors,” he reminded you, “just think of this as an acting job.”

“This is the worst acting job I’ve ever had. And I’ve done low-budget horror.”

“Look, we gotta be at the convention soon. Just shower and relax. Like I said, there’s no way this is legitimate. It’s Vegas,” he said with a forced laugh. “I’ll check on it anyway, okay? Meanwhile, maybe you can ask everyone else what they remember from last night. Maybe someone knows what happened.”

* * *

**Rob’s POV**

Rob felt a tiny bit bad for giving Y/N the task of facing his friends. He just knew that he was about to receive a world of grief over all of this, and he hoped that Y/N would receive the most of it before anyone had the chance to get to him first. He volunteered himself to visit the chapel to check into this, mostly because she had seemed so upset by the idea that this could have happened; and also because he had a gut feeling that this hadn’t been some stupid joke.

The driver pulled up at the chapel and Rob got out to make his way inside. It was quiet this early in the morning and a woman behind the counter greeted him.

“Hey!” She smiled, “I didn’t think I’d see you back this early.”

Rob frowned, unnerved by the fact that this woman clearly recognized him.

“You know me?” He asked.

“Well, yeah. You and your wife were so cute. Unfortunately, I didn’t have your pictures ready just yet. Probably later this afternoon.”

“What pictures?”

“The pictures from the ceremony,” she smiled.

“There was a ceremony? So, a wedding actually happened?”

“Yeah, I definitely recognize you,” she replied, now looking confused.

“So, we just came in here alone and, what, got married by Elvis or something?”

“Actually, it was Johnny Cash; and you weren’t alone,” she corrected him, giving him a quizzical look at the same time. “Don’t you remember?”

“Um, it was a wild night as you can imagine,” he fake laughed. “Can you refresh my memory maybe?”

“Yeah, you came in with a friend. Uh, sweet woman. Tiny, red hair, Scottish probably.”

“Ruth…” Rob breathed out.

“I didn’t catch her name. But she was very excited for you. You were all really happy.”

“Yeah, yeah, happiest day of our lives. Can I see some sort of proof that all of this happened?”

“Sure. I I’ve got copies of the license and the signed paperwork right here.”

He took a deep breath, wondering how the hell he could have let this happen. The woman handed over the paperwork and he tried to focus on it, head still pounding from the massive headache that he had. Right there on the actual wedding certificate was Ruth’s name as a witness. Rob’s blood boiled upon seeing her name. She had been there and had allowed this to happen. He glanced through the rest of it, feeling helpless now. Everything seemed legitimate. His only question now was how they had managed to get a marriage license so quickly. He decided against asking her this, it was bad enough that he didn’t remember most of last night. He asked a few more questions, just to clarify some things; none of it actually helping to make any of this any better.

He thanked the woman as he left, dreading the fact that he now had to face Y/N with the news. Even worse, they had to face everyone else. He wondered if Y/N had fared any better at getting information from anyone. 

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

Making your way to the greenroom and being face to face with everyone was a lot harder than you thought it would be. Immediately, the girls jumped at you, demanding to know what had happened last night. You thought it best not to lie to them.

“Okay, I know everyone is freaked out; trust me, I am equally freaked out. But we don’t know what happened. Rob is out trying to figure that out now.”

“Did you seriously get married?” Briana asked, panic in her voice.

“When we said we encouraged the two of you hooking up, we didn’t mean to take it this far,” Kim added.

“I know,” you sighed. “Trust me, I’m freaking out too.”

As you listened to them go on about what a mistake this could be, Rich joined in on the conversation.

“Look, I don’t know what happened last night, but the two of you better fix this quickly,” he said. You could sense the annoyance in his voice, probably aimed at you for the fact that you could have possibly married his best friend on accident.

“We will, if there’s anything to fix. I’m waiting for Rob to get back so we have a better idea of what happened.”

“Ruth,” Rich called out, turning toward the woman sitting quietly on the couch. “You went with them last night, what happened?”

You eyed her, not even remembering her being there at all.

“What do you mean? I have no idea what happened,” she replied casually.

“You were with them after they left.”

“Yes, I got them back to the hotel and that was it. Whatever they did after is not my fault.”

Just then, the greenroom door opened and you all looked toward it together.

“Ruth,” Rob said accusingly as he stepped into the room. “You were there.”

She glanced around nervously as everyone’s eyes went right back to her.

“Okay, maybe I was,” she sputtered.

“You said you left us at the hotel,” you added.

“I did. We did get to the hotel. Before any of us even made it to our rooms, you said you wanted to get married,” she looked at you now.

“I would never…”

“Really?” Rob smirked. “You’re the one who came up with the idea?”

“Calm down,” Ruth warned. “You were the one who kept telling her that you were in love with her. You agreed to it without hesitation.”

“Okay, but why?” You asked. “Was there not a point where you thought to yourself that it was irresponsible to let your friends do this?”

“Ruth, how could you let this happen?” Rob added.

“Me? Irresponsible? I was just along for the ride. I tried to talk you out of it, but you were both so excited. You’re adorable together. How could I not support my friends on their wedding day? Who’s really irresponsible here?”

“You don’t support people when they’re making drunken mistakes,” Rob said, voice raising as he began to get upset again.

“To be fair, I had been drinking as well.”

“We don’t even remember anything,” he added. “That was not the time to support us.”

“You were so cute though,” she said with a smile. “Besides, it’s not even finalized until the paperwork is filed, you’re fine.”

“It was filed!” Rob shouted. “This is very legitimate now.”

“What?” You breathed out in shock as you looked at him. Your heart nearly stopped as he said the words.

“Okay, so, don’t get mad. But the paperwork was filed first thing this morning, per your request.”

“My request?”

“The lady at the chapel sent it off immediately. She said you were so cute and excited. You wanted it to be official right away.”

“No, no,” you insisted, “that was not me. I would not do that. I don’t marry strange men on a whim.”

“Hey,” Rob frowned, feelings hurt, “I’m right here.”

“You know what I mean,” you snapped. “This cannot be happening. How did this happen? Ruth, how could you let this happen?”

“It wasn’t my fault,” she reminded you. “Who am I to stand in the way of true love?”

“This is not love,” you replied frantically, pointing between you and Rob. “This is a mistake. I don’t know him. I met him yesterday. How could you think that this would be okay?”

“Jesus,” Rob huffed in exasperation. He ran his hand down his face, letting it all sink in. “I’m fucking married. Again.”

“Again?” You shouted.

“It’s not like that,” he replied. “I have an ex-wife.”

“Okay, this is great and all,” Rich cut in, “frickin’ hilarious. You really got us. Now, just tell me this is a joke so we can go on with our day.”

“This is not a joke, Rich,” Rob replied, face red with frustration. “Did those pictures look like a joke? Does this look like a joke?” He threw his hand up in front of Rich’s face to show off the wedding band. You hesitantly held your own hand up to show off yours as well.

“How did this happen?” Rich replied.

“I don’t know,” Rob began. “All I do know is that Y/N and I managed to get a marriage license at some point, made it down to a chapel, got married by… Johnny Cash, and the wedding certificate was signed. This is not a joke. We are legally married.”

“Please stop saying that,” you whispered, closing your eyes as if to imagine that you would wake up from this nightmare at some point.

“Johnny Cash?” Kim jumped in, sort of grinning at the thought of it. “Whose idea was that?”

You raised your hand, not really positive since you didn’t remember anything, but if you knew yourself well enough, that part had been your idea.

“That was probably me,” you mumbled.

“Okay, we’re off topic here,” Rob said. “This is a very bad thing.”

“Alright,” Rich interjected. He looked serious now, holding his hands up as he tried to make sense of this. “So, you’re married? For real?”

“Yes,” Rob breathed out.

“But, you don’t remember any of it?”

“Not a thing. I barely remember going back to the hotel last night.”

“Ruth,” Rich said, focusing his attention on her. “You do remember what happened?”

“I do,” she replied shamefully.

“Okay, just walk us through it; don’t leave anything out. Then, we can figure out what needs to be done to fix this.”

Ruth straightened up, seemingly ready to do just that when Briana cut in.

“Great idea and all,” she began. “But the con starts soon. I mean, we should probably just work today and figure it out tonight when we aren’t busy.”

“Great idea and all, Briana,” Rob said sarcastically, “but I’ve got a panel and Y/N has a panel with you and the girls. We posted our wedding all over the place. People are going to ask questions.”

“Okay, bad idea,” she admitted.

“The two of you are just going to have to go with it. It’s out there, whether you want it to be or not,” Rich scolded you.

“Why do you think it’s a good idea to ‘just go with it’?” You said finally. You had heard that thought twice today, and it didn’t sit well with you to lie about this.

“Maybe she’s right,” Rob said quietly.

“Oh, alright.” Rich’s demeanor changed to sassy in an instant. “Why don’t you just be honest? Tell everyone that you both got drunk and did a stupid thing, a legitimate thing. Tell everyone that you’re actually married even though you just met yesterday. While you’re at it, maybe you can talk about how you both know that this marriage needs to end. How about that Robbie? You wanna tell people that your second marriage failed the minute it started because you don’t remember marrying her? That’ll look real nice considering you just got divorced three months ago.”

You watched in horror as Rich practically yelled at Rob. Even worse, you noticed the look of absolute devastation on Rob’s face as he listened to all of this. You knew that Rob had an ex-wife, you just didn’t know about how recent it had been. You didn’t know him, but you felt a sudden pang of sympathy for the man. This was your fault as much as it was his. What Rich had to say made sense. You certainly didn’t want this mistake to be obvious to people. You were the one who was new to the show, you didn’t want to already give yourself a bad name.

“Rich is right,” you said after a few moments of everyone standing in silent shock. “I can’t go out there and admit that I fucked up this bad on my first day.”

“I’m only looking out for the two of you because God knows you can’t do it for yourselves,” Rich added. “So, here’s how it’s going to go. Avoid it. Avoid talking about it at all costs. Everyone else; dance around the questions if they come up. Do not let these two say anything in response.”

You and Rob both stared down at the floor as Rich instructed everyone. You felt like a kid who had done something bad and was now being scolded.

“We can do that,” Kim agreed.

“If you don’t talk about it,” Rich continued, putting his focus back on you and Rob, “then ending it later won’t be a huge shock to anyone. I would rather my friend not be divorced twice in three months, but maybe we can figure something else out. For now, you two keep your mouths shut; no talking about it, no social media, no nothing.”

You and Rob nodded your understanding in unison, still shamed that these people even had to do any sort of damage control for you. Rich relaxed a bit, still looking upset over the entire mess. He shook his head at the two of you before walking off. The others dispersed after him, no one saying a word.

When you were alone again, you glanced over to Rob. You were sure that the two of you were both feeling the same thing, and the hangovers weren’t helping. Keep your mouths shut. You knew you could do that. You were relieved to have everyone else handle this for you right now.

“It’s okay,” Rob mumbled to you. “If you and I can’t figure this out, they will.”

“Okay,” you replied, not sure if you believed any of them at this point. For now, the situation was handled; but this mess was a whole lot bigger than just trying to dodge fan questions.

“Oh, by the way,” he added as he gave you a forced smile. “Welcome to the convention circuit.”


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Rob finally get some answers. Now, they have to decided how to actually handle this. Between the demands of their friends, and the knowledge of the parts that they each played; Rob is desperate to remind Reader that there is another option. It might be a little selfish on his part, but he convinces himself that it would be the best for both of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rob pulls a dick move in this chapter. Just setting up the future angst for you.

**Reader’s POV**

You didn’t feel the least bit bad that Rob would have to be the first one of the two of you to do a panel that day. You sat in the greenroom, feeling bitter and upset that any of this had happened. You knew it wasn’t entirely his fault, but at the same time, this was completely unlike you. A small part of you held on to some resentment toward him.

You waited alone, nervous as to what could be going on out there. You imagined the worst; fans asking only questions about what had happened, the guys doing their best to dodge those questions and failing. You stared down at the ring on your finger, only now wondering if either of you should actually be wearing them. 

You recalled how Rich had scolded Rob about being married again despite the fact that his first marriage had ended not too long ago. You felt bad for him, but you felt worse for yourself. This was not how you imagined your own life would go. You had always believed that you would be married once in your life; but now the looming realization that this particular marriage was a mistake had you scared for the fact that you would probably be divorced soon. You were disappointed in yourself.

“Hey,” a voice said softly to you. You glanced up, noticing Briana standing there.

“Hi,” you replied.

She sat next to you, draping an arm around your shoulders as she pulled you into her. You rested your head on her, relaxing if just for a moment.

“This is all my fault,” she said.

“The only people to blame are me and Rob.”

“No, if I hadn’t pumped you two so full of alcohol, this never would have happened.”

“Well, I usually don’t drink like that.”

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I just wanted the two of you to feel comfortable enough to talk to each other. You said you thought he was cute.”

“I did say that. But, I never said I wanted to marry him.”

“We’ll figure it out,” she promised. “There’s no way any of us are going to let the two of you go through this alone.”

“Thanks, I just hope there’s an easy way to handle it.”

“Maybe after we know exactly what happened, we can come up with a plan. Ruth was there, I’m sure she has some answers.”

“God, I really hope so.”

* * *

You found out later that the guys had successfully avoided answering any question concerning the accidental marriage. From the sound of it, it hadn’t been easy; but this cast was pretty good at dealing with unwanted questions. Rob looked exhausted when they returned to the greenroom, and you worried that when it came to be your time on stage again, you’d be feeling just as defeated as he looked.

“That was rough,” Rob said when you made your way to him. “Seriously, every other question was about what we did last night. Eventually, the fans had to come up with second questions when they realized that we were avoiding the entire thing.”

“What do I do?” You asked, anxious now that you realized you’d be in the same position shortly.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Just hope the girls can handle it.”

* * *

Once onstage, you looked to Kim, Ruth, and Briana for comfort. You knew that they wouldn’t let you fail up here, but you were still nervous. You had thousands of people staring at you right now, and you knew that everyone one of them was genuinely curious or very much judging you at this moment.

The girls made the intro long, doing what they could to avoid questions at all. But, when they finally had to take questions, of course the first one was directed at you.

“Did you and Rob really get married?” The girl asked. You pulled back at how blunt the question was, really panicked now that you had actually heard it come from someone’s mouth. You glanced at the girls for help, but apparently all that talk about making sure that you and Rob didn’t have to answer these questions sounder a lot easier than it really was. They each looked at you, equally panicked as none of them knew what to say.

The only thing left to do now that the silence from the stage was getting awkward was to try to handle this on your own.

“Well, thanks for your question,” you began, “but, Rob and I aren’t ready to discuss it at this time.”

It was all you could think of in the moment, but at least it seemed to work. The girl accepted your answer and simply asked another unrelated question. Eventually, the panel moved along and no one even bothered trying to press you for more information on the entire thing.

Perhaps Rich had been wrong about avoiding it after all. All you had to do was admit that it wasn’t up for discussion at this point, and the fans left it alone.

The rest of the day remained busy. You did autos and photo ops again, only occasionally getting questions from fans, to which you politely declined to answer. Everyone seemed to be respectful of that, and you finished the day feeling a lot less stressed. You had found Rob at one point during the day and let him know what you were telling people to make them drop he topic. He thanked you and even he appeared to look less stressed each time you saw him throughout the day.

* * *

Just before karaoke, the group decided to forgo drinking beforehand. It seemed to be the last thing on anyone’s mind given the way the last night of partying had gone. Instead, you all headed back to your room together, now joined by Matt who had arrived earlier today. He caught wind of what had happened on his flight to Vegas and had immediately went to Rob when he arrived. It was a humiliating thing, listening to Rob explain the situation to yet another one of his friends that you didn’t know.

You sort of hoped you could hear Ruth’s side of the story alone; just you and Rob. But, you already knew that you didn’t have answers, maybe someone else would.

“Okay, spill,” Rob said as he eyed Ruth. She looked nervous sitting there as everyone stared at her, waiting for her explanation.

She walked you through the entire night. She had escorted the two of you back to the hotel, as promised. Apparently, you and Rob remained quite handsy with each other. In the hallway, on the way to the rooms; you had declared that you wanted to marry him. Just like that, no real reasoning behind the decision. Ruth relayed that Rob had declared his love to you and said he wanted to marry you as well.

“There were tears,” Ruth said. “You were both so happy, you were crying.”

“I wasn’t crying,” Rob replied.

“You were bawling like a baby,” Ruth retorted.

Ruth had tried to talk you out of it, but the two of you were so set on the idea, she found that arguing was accomplishing nothing. So, she got another cab and the three of you drove to the marriage license bureau. She said she had hoped that going there would knock some sense into you when you realized what you were doing.

“You got up there and demanded a license,” she explained. “You got the paperwork; I’m not even sure how you managed to fill it out properly; handed it back with your documents, and within an hour, you had a marriage license.”

“They let us actually do that?” You asked.

“You both just seemed so happy. Honestly, it’s like you weren’t even drunk anymore, just dead set on getting married.”

“This is bad,” Rob muttered.

“Anyway, we got back in the car, you said you wanted a dress and rings. We found a place open late that had both. A little pawn shop on the Strip. Then the driver took us to a little chapel. I thought about calling someone to come help alleviate the situation but…” She trailed off, glancing up at you with a smile.

“But?” Rob asked.

“On the way there, you two were just so… in love.”

“We are not in love,” you replied. “I don’t even know him, Ruth.”

“I know that. I realize that now. But you were kissing and saying the sweetest things to each other. You both looked so happy. A far cry from how nervous you usually are, Y/N. And, seeing Rob smile like that… no one has seen him look that happy in months.”

“We get it, we’re happy drunks,” Rob said, annoyed by the story.

“When we got to the chapel, I couldn’t. I couldn’t bring myself to call anyone to stop it. I was sort of drunk too. It made my heart burst to be a part of the happiness. So, I helped you get married. I was witness.”

“Yeah I know,” Rob mumbled. “This is a beautiful story and all, but your inability to tell the difference between two people in love and two people who are shit-faced has now gotten us into a world of trouble.”

“You both just looked so happy,” she said softly as she stared at the floor, guilty over the part that she had played in this.

You wanted to scold her some more. You wanted to yell at her for misreading the entire thing. It doesn’t matter how happy someone looks when they are wasted, you don’t allow them to make decisions like this if you can stop it.

“Okay,” Kim began. “There’s no use in being angry with Ruth. She didn’t do this. She may have encouraged it, but it’s not entirely her fault.”

“Now, we just figure out what to do next,” Briana added.

You sat there as ideas were thrown around. You glanced at Rob once to see that maybe he was feeling the same way as you were about this entire scene. You should have been grateful to have them try to figure this out for you, but right now, you were sort of pissed that they were making decisions for you. Yes, the entire thing had been a stupid accident, but you realized that you didn’t want these people to make a choice for you. This was your accident. This was Rob’s accident as well. Perhaps it was a mistake that the two of you should discuss and make decisions for.

“There are options,” Rich began. “You can hold out and just get a divorce, or you could get an annulment.”

“An annulment?” Rob asked.

“Yeah, it’s just like erasing the whole thing. It’ll be like it never even happened.”

“I know what an annulment is,” Rob replied.

“Then why do you look so confused?”

“Because, you’re making is sound so easy. You act as if doing that fixes everything.”

“It will. Would you rather have a marriage that never existed, or two divorces under your belt within the last three months?”

“I would rather that this never happened.”

“Well, it’s too late for that, buddy,” Rich snapped.

“You’re right, Rich” you cut in. “That’s the option that makes the most sense.”

“Well I’m glad one of you isn’t a complete idiot all the time. So, that’s it. You’re getting an annulment today.”

“Are you going to let Rich make a decision for us?” Rob blurted out. He looked at you in confusion. “I mean, the advice is great and all, but maybe you and I should just sit down and talk about this.”

You inhaled sharply, surprised at the way Rob seemed to be on the same page as you. You understood that an annulment was the right way to go, but now after hearing Rich pretty much demand it from you, you were slightly irritated.

“No, I just- this is what should be done.”

“I understand that,” Rob replied. “But I think that you and I really need to have a discussion on what it would mean for us. We should probably talk about what any of our options mean for us.”

“Fine,” you replied angrily. Right now, you just wanted this all to be over. You wanted to not be accidentally married anymore, you wanted to push the mistake aside and pretend that it didn’t happen. The fact that Rob had a point that you very much agreed with was making you angry. What should have been a simple fix for a thing that never should have happened, was turning out to be a lot more complicated that you imagined. “Then let’s sit down and talk.”

“Jesus,” Kim breathed out. “You two sound like you’re married.”

You looked around at everyone. All of these people that you barely knew, who were judging you and standing here making decisions for you… you suddenly became annoyed. You decided that Rob was right. It had been stupid to think that these people could fix this for you. You and Rob had to figure it out.

“Leave,” you said firmly, glancing around at each of them. “Please, just go.”

* * *

**Rob’s POV**

When everyone had left, leaving Rob with Y/N; he very suddenly realized how awkward this really was. He still sort of looked at her as the cute new girl that he wanted to make-out with. There was no way he could think of her as his wife even if, legally, that’s who she was right now.

Until the situation was completely dealt with, he had to try to make it less weird, if that were possible. Also, he wanted to make sure that she understood exactly what this entire mess could mean for the both of them. Their friends meant well, and their advice was warranted given the circumstances, but Rob had sort of a selfish reasoning behind what he was about to do.

“Have you ever been married before? You’re not currently married, are you? I mean, to someone who isn’t me?” He asked.

“No, I’m not married. Or, I wasn’t. I’ve never been married… until now I guess.”

“Great,” Rob sighed in frustration. “Now you’re married to a man that you didn’t even mean to marry in the first place. I’m sorry.”

“Hey, I don’t blame you. I was just as much a part of this mess as you were.”

“This is not how I wanted you to form your first impression of me.”

“You… have been married before,” she stated.

“Uh, yeah. My divorce was actually finalized about three months ago.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. But, you can imagine how this looks for me. Especially since we were very excited about our wedding and shared the special day with the entire world.”

She laughed slightly despite the situation.

Looking back, Rob decided that the fact that they had both posted photos everywhere, was sort of funny. Obviously he and Y/N had both had a really good time with each other that night; enough that it was decided to go out and get married in the first place.

“I’m going to look like such an asshole when this marriage ends.”

“Well, Rich is right, an annulment will just basically mean that it never happened in the first place.”

“Yeah, I know. I guess I’m just looking at it from the perspective of everyone else. Getting it annulled doesn’t erase the fact that it happened.”

“You’re right. We made a mistake and I guess there’s no going back from it.”

“I just- never thought I’d be a part of another failed marriage.”

“It’s not really a failure if it never really happened, you know?”

“I wish that’s how everyone else would see it.”

“It doesn’t matter what anyone thinks.”

“Don’t you worry about what people will say about you?”

Rob regretted saying it immediately. He had only considered guilting her into staying with him, he never actually thought he could do it. It had been on his mind all day honestly. No matter how much he told himself that he couldn’t do that to her, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. He thought mostly about what people would say about him, how they would judge him for getting married right now in the first place. God knows they wouldn’t have good things to say if this shotgun wedding was suddenly over. He knew it was crazy, he knew he couldn’t stay married to Y/N. They didn’t even know each other. At this point, he was desperate though.

“What do you mean?” She asked nervously, “What would they say about me?”

“I- I don’t know,” Rob stuttered. He shrugged his shoulders, trying to think of a good way to put this so that it didn’t sound like him just trying to save his own ass here. He needed to make it look as if he were looking out for her to. “They’d probably say that you’re a bad person for marrying someone you don’t know. You’re new to the show and the cons, they don’t know you like they know the rest of us. I’m just afraid that they’ll attack you for all of this. I’m just worried that you’ll get all the blame.”

He wanted to shut up. He wanted to make himself stop talking to her like this. But it was word vomit at this point. One last desperate attempt to save his own ass.

“Really?” She asked. Her face fell in disappointment, her eyes watering as she let it sink in.

“Yeah, I mean, the fans know me. They know that I just got divorced not too long ago. They know that’s been hard on me. They know that I don’t do things like this. They don’t know you very well though.”

“It’s not my fault,” she sputtered, now upset as Rob continued to speak.

“I know that,” he said softly. He placed a hand on her knee in some lame attempt to pretend that he was comforting her. “Look, you decide what we should do. If you want an annulment, fine. I’ll do that. But you should really consider what this could do to your job.”

“Do we even have other options?”

Rob knew that options were limited. It was either an annulment now, a divorce a little later down the road; which still wasn’t the greatest of the options, or staying married to save face. He felt that he was aiming for the latter, and the fact that he was seriously thinking that way bothered him. It shouldn’t have been an option on the first place.

“Well, I guess we have a few.”

“Tell me, so I can think about this.”

Rob tilted his head and gave her a look. He didn’t say anything in response, just looked at her as if to say that she knew damn well what the options were. As he watched the look of horror on her face when she finally put it all together, he felt a twinge of regret. It wasn’t fair to put this all on her. It wasn’t right to guilt her into anything. But, he also knew that if they didn’t play this carefully. It could be really bad for both of them. In the end, he felt that he had said enough to sway her into the direction that he wanted her to go.

“So, really, the only options are annulment, divorce, or staying married.”

“I think that covers everything.”

“Ending this marriage would make us both look really bad, right?”

“Well, yeah,” he agreed. “I don’t think either of us would win.”

“How is staying married even an option? We don’t know each other. Do you think people will just believe that we fell in love and decided to get married after one day of knowing each other?”

“I don’t know what I think. I know it’s not ideal, but like I said before, were actors. We can pretend to be in this legitimate happy marriage to keep people from saying anything bad. Eventually, everyone will move on from the excitement of us being newlyweds. Someday down the line, we can decide what to do next.”

“So, you’re okay with getting divorced later on?”

“Look, I would rather not be divorced again; but I would also rather not be divorced twice in the same year.”

“This is crazy,” she breathed out. “Staying in an accidental marriage is absolutely insane and irresponsible.”

“I think that’s kind of our thing right now.”

“I don’t know what to do…”

“Just- take some time to think about it. Whatever you decide in the end; we’ll do that. I promise. I just don’t want either of us to jump into a decision without considering what that choice could do to our careers and our families.”

“Okay,” she agreed finally. “I will think about what you said.”

“Thank you,” Rob said with a smile. “I’m here when you decide.”

With that, Rob excused himself; leaving her room with the slightest feeling of comfort that he had sufficiently talked her into staying married, at least for now. It was insane, it was the worst idea ever; but if it saved him from looking like an asshole publicly, he knew he had to convince her somehow.

* * *

Just as he made his way inside his own room, there was a loud knock at his door. He moved to open it, rolling his eyes when he saw a very disappointed Rich and Briana standing at his door. He moved to let them in, preparing himself for the fact that Rich was definitely going to reprimand him again. Before either of them even had the chance to get the first word in, Rob answered the question that he knew was coming.

“We’re not getting an annulment,” he explained. “Not yet anyway.”

“You realize that you have a small window of time before it is no longer an option?” Rich asked. He looked frustrated at the way Rob seemed to be going against the very thing that he was adamant about.

“I know that. Look, we’re figuring it out. Everyone kept talking about separations and divorces; no one even mentioned the other option to her. I just- reminded her that it was there.”

“Did you really just beg your one-night stand to stay married to you?” Rich asked with a hint of disgust.

“I didn’t beg her,” Rob defended himself. “I just threw the options out there and I’m letting her decide.”

“I mean, you should both decide together,” Briana added.

“I already know what I’ve decided,” Rob said. “It’s up to her now.”

“Let me guess,” Rich scoffed, “not the annulment.”

“I can’t do it, Rich.”

“If you’re against an annulment, then I imagine a divorce is also not in your plans.”

“I’m just trying to avoid those two things.”

“Dude. You can’t stay married to her. This shouldn’t have happened in the first place.”

“You think I don’t know that? Richie, I can’t get divorced. Not again.”

“Then you get an annulment!”

“It’s basically the same thing! I am just trying to avoid being the guy with two failed marriages in the last three months.”

“If you didn’t want a second failed marriage, might I suggest not marrying a woman that you just met.”

“I know man, you don’t think I don’t know?”

“You have done a lot of stupid shit, sir,” Rich breathed out. “But, this is by far the worst.” He was infuriated now. Rob couldn’t tell if Rich was angry at him for not wanting the annulment, or if he was just angry that his friend could be this stupid in the first place.

“Why I am I the one getting blamed here? She was there too. She didn’t stop any of it. She looks pretty damn thrilled in our wedding pictures.”

“You want me to try to be mad at her? Look at her, she’s adorable. But you, you’re an idiot! I blame you for this.”

“Me?” Rob cried, looking shocked.

“Yes you,” Rich replied. “You’re the one who was so torn up over your divorce, you got stupid and thought that a second marriage was the way to fix things. I can’t help but think that you did this on purpose.”

“How dare you?” Rob gasped in return.

“Tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong,” he shouted. “You wanna know how this happened? It happened because I have asshole friends who thought it would be a great idea to get Y/N and I drunk off our asses because they were tired of watching me wallow in self pity, so they figured the only way to make me happy again was to get the new girl drunk so she’d sleep with me.”

Rich pulled back in shock, “Th-that’s not-”

“Yes! That’s what happened. I’m not an idiot. You kept telling me that she was checking me out. You and the guys insisted that we go out drinking. You assured me that she wanted me. The girls didn’t help much either. All of you thought that if you got the two of us to hook up, I’d stop being so fucking bummed about my marriage ending.”

“We didn’t mean for either of you to get that drunk. We just- knew that you’re both so nervous around each other,” Briana cut in, looking just as shocked as Rich.

“Alright, I get it. I admit it, I think she’s fucking cute. I was attracted immediately. I probably shouldn’t have told any of you that right after I met her, because you took it upon yourselves to get us together.”

“We just meant for you to maybe make-out a bit and, I dunno, fool around,” Briana said.

“Well, that definitely happened. Your plan to get me laid worked so well, I married her. Thanks a lot. You’re all great friends.”

Neither of them had anything to say in return to all of that. They just stared at Rob, suddenly guilty for the part that they had played.

“Just go,” Rob said sternly. “Don’t you have to help Matt host karaoke?”

“Ruth was the one who practically walked you down the aisle, I don’t see you blaming her,” Rich stated. He eyed Rob as he tried to aim the blame elsewhere. Rob understood that this was how Rich worked. He didn’t like to be the one who messed up his friends lives, so he did what he could to pin it on someone else.

“Trust me, she’s holding most of the blame. I have a lot to say to her. Leave.”

Briana grabbed Rich by the arm and began to pull him toward the door. At least she understood when it was the right time to back off. Rob was infuriated enough as it was, she knew that it was best not to make the situation worse.

Just as she had the door open and was pulling Rich out, Rich took it upon himself to get the last word in.

“Fine. Throw blame around all you want, Rob. Blame me and Briana, blame Ruth, blame all of us for how drunk you got. But at the end of the day, you’re the one who put the ring on Y/N’s finger.”


	4. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Rob have made a big decision; one that they know their friends won’t support. It all makes sense in their own minds, and now they need to figure out a way to convince everyone else to go along with it.

**Reader’s POV**

You opted out of karaoke that night. You hoped that it wouldn’t look bad for you to not attend given it was your first convention, but you had a lot to think about. There was no way you would enjoy yourself and you desperately wanted to avoid being seen if at all possible.

You paced your room, running things over in your mind. Rob was right. You were the one who was new to all of this. The fans didn’t know much about you and you knew it looked bad that you had married Rob after just meeting him. There was no way either of you were looking good right now, but you selfishly thought mostly about yourself. 

You could get the annulment, just pretend that this never happened. At least it would be like you had never been married at all. You thought about the way the two of you had thrown those pictures up on social media. You were both in the spotlight. You each had a lot of followers and still unread notifications from the entire fiasco. What if you annulled this and went on to say that it never happened? Would anyone really believe you? On paper, it all looked so easy. But, when you’re an actor and word spreads quickly, there’s really no going back from mistakes like this.

You considered your other options when you realized that an annulment wouldn’t fix what people already knew. It made your stomach turn just knowing that you were even considering the alternatives. You could remain married to him. You could act as if it hadn’t been a mistake; it had just been a spur of the moment thing between two people in love. Someday down the road, you could just divorce and maybe it wouldn’t look so bad.

You felt yourself tear up just thinking about this. It would be a lie. Sure, you had thought Rob was cute when you met him; but how could you jump from attraction to marriage like this. You hadn’t even kissed him; or rather, you hadn’t actually shared a kiss with him that you clearly remembered.

You breathed out deeply, frustration and disappointment evident. You grabbed your phone and sent him a quick text message, hoping that he was still awake.

_You: Are you up? We need to talk._

_Rob: I’m up. Come to my room 1113._

You pocketed your phone and room key and headed out the door.

When you found his room, you knocked quietly, sort of surprised when he answered it.

“Come in,” he said as he stepped aside to let you in.

“Okay, I’ve been thinking,” you began. “You told me to decide, and whatever I decided you’d go along with.”

He nodded, looking uncomfortable as he waited for your answer.

“Look, maybe we can just hold off on ending it for a while.”

“Really?” He asked. He looked sort of shocked that this was your decision.

“Okay, this might sound a little crazy. But, hear me out. What if we just stayed married for now?”

“That’s what I was going for,” he admitted. “It is insane, but pretending to be happily married beats ending this right away just to have fans eat us alive.”

“I’m new to this show,” you explained. “I don’t want to be the bad guy here. I can’t let this stupid mistake ruin things for me.”

“I agree. I also can’t let this ruin what I already have.”

“Okay,” you breathed out. “So we’re just staying married. For now.”

“Okay,” he replied, a small smile forming on his lips. He seemed relieved and terrified all at once.

“So, we can just be honest about it publicly. We have to be. People are not going to stop asking and talking. We say that we met and just fell in love.”

“Love at first sight,” he added.

“Yes.” You cringed as you agreed. There was no way you ever believed in that shit, at least not enough to marry someone right away. “We say that we got married, spur of the moment.”

“People will still think we’re crazy. It’s still crazy to marry someone after knowing them for one day.”

“Yeah, well… okay. How about this? Dating is hard. Especially at our ages. What if we just say that we wanted skip all of that and be married?”

“It’s still crazy… but less crazy than getting drunk and not remembering getting married.”

“Do you think people would buy it?”

“I don’t know? Maybe?” Even he looked doubtful. “I think it might work if we explain that publicly.”

“Okay, what about everyone else?”

“They know the truth. They won’t buy it. But we can probably get them to go along with it.”

You both stood there in silence for a moment, letting this all sink in. you couldn’t believe that you were about to go through with this. You couldn’t believe that this was even an option that you were considering. All you could do was try to alleviate the situation without destroying either of your lives.

“So, we stay married, deal with it later maybe when things calm down?” Rob asked.

“I think so,” you replied. “I really think that’s the only way we avoid looking like assholes.”

“How does this work then?” Rob asked.

“I don’t know,” you said honestly. “I figure, we can just address it now, at least to get people off our backs about it. You and I can figure out the details later.”

“Fuck, I can’t believe I’m married again,” he reiterated as he ran a hand through his hair. “How did this happen? How are we even going to make this work?”

You bit your lip, wondering if should even bring up all the other stuff that you had been thinking about. It sounded insane in your head, you were sure it would terrify the man if you said it out loud.

“I mean, it’s not the greatest plan,” you admitted.

“No, but it’s all we’ve got.”

“Alright,” you said, now feeling an even bigger sense of dread wash over you. Were you really doing this? Was this the right choice? “So, that’s the plan and we’re going with it.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “I think it’s the only thing that’s going to save us right now.”

“Tomorrow we’ll address this publicly or whatever. We won’t make a huge deal out of it, just enough to get people to stop talking.”

“Okay.”

“We still have to figure out how to tell our friends,” you added. “They don’t seem to be the kind of people who are going to support this.”

“Rich? Hell no,” he laughed. “He is going to try to talk us out of it. The rest… I don’t know, they might be easier to deal with.”

“I cannot believe that this has even been a discussion,” you mumbled. “What the fuck were we thinking?”

“We weren’t,” he said, giving you a look of sympathy.

“I’m going to bed. I still have a lot to think about. I’ll see you in the morning and then we’ll figure out the details I guess.”

“Oh, okay,” he replied. “Look, we’re doing the right thing. It’s the only choice that saves our asses.”

“I know,” you said.

**Rob’s POV**

When Y/N was gone, Rob let out a relieved breath. So far, she had gone in the exact direction that he wanted her to go. He knew it was absolutely insane. No one should stay married to someone that they accidentally married. He had enough on his plate though.

With his divorce being finalized recently, he absolutely didn’t need a second one right now. It was bad enough that his ex-wife had left him, it was going to look really bad if his second wife left him as well. His last marriage had been a disaster all on it’s own; this one was even worse. He didn’t even want to think about what people would say about him if they knew the truth. While he had suggested staying married to help Y/N out as well; he knew that the entire thing benefited him even more.

He knew that he wasn’t in the clear just yet. Y/N had seemed hesitant about the decision when they talked. Letting her go back to her room to think some more could easily go badly for him. He feared that she’d wake up in the morning and realize that the decision was completely insane. He knew that if he wanted to keep her thinking that this was a good idea, he was going to have to step up and make her realize that maybe it wasn’t so bad after all.

* * *

Rob woke up extra early that morning and made his way downstairs to a coffee shop. Once he got there, with the intention on sweetening the deal with Y/N, he realized that he didn’t even know what kind of coffee she drank. He made his best guess, figuring that he should just play it safe with plain black coffee. He ordered them both coffees and made his way back up to her room.

When she answered the door, she looked surprised to see him. She looked as if she had been in the middle of fixing her hair, but she let him in anyway.

“Uh, I brought you coffee,” he said, holding it out to her. “I don’t know what you like, so it’s just black. I did bring sugar and cream though.”

“That’s actually perfect, thank you.”

Rob caught on to a legitimate smile from her and he smiled in return.

“Did you really wake up early to bring me coffee?” She continued.

“Yeah, figured you could use an early morning pick-me-up. I do things like that for all my wives.”

She glared at him suddenly, not sure if that was meant to be a joke. Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t really a joke.

“Speaking of wives,” she began as she stood at the bathroom mirror, going back to her hair. Rob stood at the doorway, leaning against the frame as he watched her. “It’s not my business, but why did your last marriage end? I sort of need to know if you make a habit of marrying women on a whim.”

“I was married for 10 years,” he replied. “We just- drifted apart. We tried to make it work. I wasn’t around a lot, with work and stuff. She couldn’t take it anymore and she asked for a divorce.”

“I’m sorry,” Y/N replied, looking at him sympathetically.

“What about you? You said you’ve never been married.”

“Nope. I dated a lot, had a few serious relationships. Nothing ever stuck though. I never found ‘the one’. Now I’m married to a guy I don’t even know.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I just always thought I’d be married one time, to someone that I loved. I never thought I’d be in this position.”

“Me neither.”

When she was done getting ready, she grabbed her coffee and some of her belongings. She smiled at Rob for a moment.

“Are we ready for this?” She asked.

He took a deep breath, not really ready, but as ready as he could ever be.

“Yeah, let’s just do this and get it over with.”

They walked out of the room together and made their way to the elevators. They silently made their way through the hotel and out front where there was already a car waiting for them. Once they were in, Rob’s nerves were high. Soon, they would have to state that they were doing this. They would have to face their friends with the news that would surely piss them off.

* * *

The moment they walked into the greenroom together, no one gave them a moment to even breathe. They all knew that the two of them had talked and were working out how to handle this on their own. They wanted answers.

“Okay,” Y/N began as everyone surrounded them. “I know you’ve all been going crazy waiting to hear what’s going on. So, here’s what’s going on.” She paused for a long time, breathing in deeply as if even she didn’t want to hear herself say this. “Rob and I are staying married.”

There was a collective gasp from some people, blank stares from a few others, and a Rich who was turning red out of sheer anger.

“No, you’re not,” Rich said sternly. “This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s not stupid,” Y/N replied, defending their decision. “What’s stupid is that this ever happened in the first place. What’s even more stupid is ending this marriage right away just to have people attack us for being idiots.”

“You are idiots!” He shouted. “You get an annulment like somewhat responsible adults and deal with the consequences that you created.”

“We’re not doing that,” Rob replied.

“You two are out of your minds,” Briana added, shaking her head. “How can you stay married to someone you don’t even know?”

“Well, I figure we can get to know each other,” Y/N replied.

“Generally you do that before you get married,” Rich cut in.

“It will be like… backwards dating,” Y/N replied. She scrunched up her face, seemingly surprised that she even said it.

“Backwards dating?” Briana asked.

“Okay, so, dating is hard anyway,” Y/N continued. “I’ve been dating for years and never found anyone. I figure, Rob and I can just stay married, get to know each other at least, and figure it out from there.”

“That’s not at all how you are supposed to date,” Rich replied.

“No, but that’s the situation we find ourselves in.”

“Rich,” Rob cut in finally. “You of all people need to just back off. All of you need to back off. I’ve already explained how pretty much everyone in this room played pretty big roles in this entire mess. You don’t get to step in and try to fix this.”

“Someone has to clean up your messes,” Rich replied. “Because obviously I can’t trust you to do that for yourselves.”

“We are,” Rob breathed out. “This is how we’re choosing to clean up the mess. I get that you don’t agree with it, but you’ve got to let us decide.”

“This is going to blow up in your faces,” he continued. “A fake marriage is probably worse than an accidental one.”

“Then let us deal with it!” Rob shouted. “Look, no one stepped in to stop us from doing something stupid. Most of you couldn’t have. But, you probably could have helped us to avoid this by not getting us wasted and encouraging us to hook up in the first place. Please, don’t step in and try to tell us how to handle it.”

“This is what’s best for us,” Y/N added. “It’s the smartest move to save ourselves publicly. We just need you guys to go along with it. Please. I just can’t be the girl who ends a marriage that just started, even if it was an accident.”

“I don’t know if I can do that,” Kim said. “This is absolutely crazy.”

Rob realized that getting everyone on board with this was a lot harder than he expected. He looked at Y/N, who seemed to be close to tears from the mix of fear and regret that she must be feeling. He glanced at the people surrounding them; still noting the looks of confusion and anger. He had to get them to go along with it. It wouldn’t work if they refused.

“Okay,” Rob began. “Can we all agree here that everyone in this room played some part in all of this?”

“Not me,” Matt called out. “I got here after the fact.”

“Fine, everyone except for Matt helped to create this mess in some way.”

“You’re still blaming everyone else for your fuck up?” Rich huffed.

“No, I’m taking responsibility for my fuck up. That doesn’t mean that the rest of you didn’t fuel the fire.”

“Okay, fine. You were right. We shouldn’t have gotten the two of you shit-faced.” Rob was sort of surprised by Rich’s agreement that he had played some role.

“Can we all agree on this? Everyone here could have done things differently?”

There were collective nods all around. Rob knew that none of this was anyone else’s fault, but he had to make them feel somewhat guilty if he wanted them to agree to this.

“You owe us this,” he stated. “You don’t have to agree with our decision. But you owe it to us to at least go along with it.”

“This is the worst idea ever,” Briana replied. “I wish you would think about this longer.”

“We don’t have a lot of time to figure out damage control,” Y/N added. “People are talking. People want to know what is going on.”

“So, what?” Rich said. “You just go out there, admit that you’re actually married, and just play house?”

“Something like that,” Y/N replied. “Look. We’re not making a huge deal out of it. We’re just going to say that it’s true, we are married, and leave it at that. No one needs to know details. No one needs more than that.”

“If we have to elaborate at any point, Y/N and I are just two people who fell in love right away. It was spur of the moment, but we’re happy with what we did.”

“No one is going to believe that,” Kim said.

“Then Rob and I will just figure out how to make people believe it.”

“I don’t like this at all,” Rich said. “This is a terrible idea.”

“You don’t have to like it,” Rob replied. “But will you at least go with it?”

Rich looked at his friend in defeat. Rob knew that he was trying so hard to help fix this mess, but he was tired of him trying to control everything. He wasn’t going to back down on this, and he stared at Rich as if to let him know that.

“Fine,” Rich said softly. “I get the feeling you’re just refusing to listen to logic. I’m tired honestly. Why don’t the two of you mess up your lives some more? I’ll just stand back and… go along with it.”

“Thank you,” Rob replied. “What about the rest of you? This won’t work if anyone decides that they just can’t play along.”

“I think I can,” Briana agreed finally. Eventually, the others agreed as well, none of them looking too thrilled about being a part of such a lie.

“Think of it as an acting job,” Rob explained. “No one has to say anything, but just pretend to be happy for us.”


	5. Part 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is having second thoughts. Luckily for Rob, he can be very persuasive.

**Reader’s POV**

You decided not to say anything unless the topic was brought up again. You had done well in avoiding the entire thing yesterday, but you knew the questions wouldn’t stop. You sat in the greenroom, watching Rob as he paced the floor nervously. Unfortunately, he spent most of his time front and center; at least you could hide most of the day.

Rich had all but given up on the two of you. He sat alone, no longer offering any advice; and you hoped that he was still willing to go along with it. There was no way you would let yourself be the idiot new girl who made such a huge mistake. Ruth and Kim were also watching Rob and you could hear them add their two cents in on how he could handle this. Their advice didn’t seem to sit well with Rob, and you wondered if it really had to be this difficult. You glanced down at your phone that was still going off with notifications coming in; you really should figure out hot to shut them off. But, it gave you an idea.

“Rob,” you called out to him. He glanced over at you, a look of sheer panic evident on his face. He made his way to you and sat down. “I think I have an idea,” you offered.

You opened your camera as you grabbed his hand. You carefully posed your hands together, making sure to get both of your rings in the picture as you tried to make it look as if you weren’t holding hands awkwardly. You snapped the picture, quickly letting go of his hand afterwards. He watched you as you opened your Instagram; where you uploaded the picture and added a filter. You started to type away and he leaned in a bit closer as he was curious as to what you were doing.

When you were done, you held up your phone for him to see.

“The rumors are true. It was love at first sight. Thank you to everyone who has supported us, we couldn’t be happier!” He read your caption out loud and glanced up at you.

“Does that work?” You asked nervously.

“You should probably tag me in that,” he said.

“I guess I should probably follow you on all my accounts,” you mumbled as you tagged him.

He chuckled softly and nodded at you, giving you the go ahead to post it. You hit Share after you made sure to link it to all your social media account.

“There, it’s done,” you breathed out as a sinking feeling started in your gut. This was wrong and you knew it.

“I’ll post something as well,” he began as he scrolled through his camera roll. “There’s got to be one decent picture from our wedding somewhere.”

The moment that you had shared the post, more notifications started to come through. You looked at Rob as he focused on doing the same and let out a loud sigh. In hindsight, this all sounded like a good idea, fake a marriage that was an accident to begin with to save your own asses. Right now though, you didn’t find yourself looking at Rob the same way as you had when you first met him. That day, your heart might have skipped a beat or two when you looked into those eyes; you might have felt a bit giddy when you saw that smile. You easily could have developed a real crush on the man. But, right now, all of that had washed away. He was still cute, but you couldn’t help but to feel angry every time you looked at him. Yes, you were both to blame here; but a bigger part of you placed most of the blame on him. This wasn’t something that you did. So, it was easier for you to blame someone else.

“Alright, I think I found one,” he said as he got to work setting up another lie. Before you could even approve, he had already posted whatever it was and you frowned. You had looked to him for approval, and he didn’t even consider your opinion.

“There,” he continued as he set his phone down. “Maybe we can just avoid talking about it publicly now.”

Just as the two of you had finished your plan for damage control, he was being called away to stage. You sat there as he left, feeling even worse about the entire thing. Just as it wasn’t like you to accidentally get married, it wasn’t like you to lie. Now, your first marriage was a lie that you realized you would have to continually lie about until you and Rob actually had a minute to figure this out. You went back to your phone, figuring it was probably time to sort through the notifications. You could only avoid this for so long. You steeled yourself as you started to go through everything, knowing that you weren’t ready for what you were about to see.

* * *

Getting ready for autographs that day was nerve wracking. Normally, you didn’t have a problem with sitting there and meeting fans, despite your nervousness in general; but today was different. You knew that people had brought up the impromptu wedding to Rob, to which he had handled it surprisingly well. But, after losing yourself in reading things online, you had every reason to believe people were still not against tearing you apart.

Many mentions of you and Rob seemed to be okay and supportive. Mostly though, people were questioning you and what it was that you were doing. Every single bad this said about this entire fiasco was aimed at you. Not once did you read anything putting blame on Rob, nor was anything said about how he was the one in the wrong.

People didn’t like that the two of you had just met and then suddenly ended up married. That was to be expected. You didn’t know why either of you believed you could get away with convincing people it was a love at first sight, spur of the moment thing. Regardless, you were seething over the fact that you were the only one in the wrong here. People questioned your motives, not Rob’s. Your anger toward him was building today, and you seriously reconsidered the route that you had decided to take in handling this.

You got through autos; mostly just smiling and nodding in response to questions concerning the marriage. You didn’t want to accidentally let slip that you were unhappy with this and that Rob was to blame. No matter how badly you wanted out of this, you knew that saying anything wrong would only make things worse for you.

* * *

At the end of the day, you joined your cast-mates for dinner. It seemed like the right thing to do to keep up the ruse even if you wanted to just sit in your room and mope. Dinner with the group would give you and Rob a chance to be seen together. All in all, it would certainly help keep the story legitimate.

At the restaurant, your friends made sure to seat you and Rob together. Drinks were ordered first and you took a pass, deciding that alcohol had done enough damage to you for one weekend. You watched angrily as Rob enjoyed a beer.

“Take it easy honey,” you said through gritted teeth. “We wouldn’t want you to get wasted and make another life-changing mistake.”

“It’s one beer,” he frowned.

You shook your head at him and looked away. Already, you were on edge. Everything was building up and every little thing that Rob did annoyed you today.

“Speaking of,” Rich began suddenly. He raised his drink and smirked at the two of you. “We never did do a proper congratulations.”

The rest of the table hesitantly followed in Rich’s direction. They each raised their drinks and stared at you and Rob. You avoided eye contact and sunk down into your seat.

“To the happy couple,” Rich said sarcastically. “May your marriage be a happy one. You really are so beautiful together.”

“Stop it,” you muttered as everyone clinked glasses together in mock celebration.

“What’s wrong?” Rich asked. “Can’t a man wish his friends good luck.”

“This is stupid,” you replied.

“Well honey, there’s a lot of things about this weekend that are stupid. The fact that we’re celebrating this sham is definitely one of those stupid things.”

“I can’t do this,” you said. It wasn’t really directed at anyone. It was mostly you coming to the realization and saying it to yourself. You pushed your chair back and stood up.

“Where are you going?” Rob said as he watched you get up. You glared at him, disgusted by him in this instant. You realized that your little crush on him from day one had been short lived as you stared at him with nothing but repulsion based on his very existence.

“I’m leaving,” you replied. “I can’t do this. Everyone was right, this was a bad idea.”

**Rob’s POV**

Rob watched helplessly as Y/N bolted from the restaurant. He looked over at Rich, shooting him a glare before jumping up from his seat to chase her. It was bad enough that this entire thing was confusing for both of them, it didn’t help to have Rich constantly doing what he could to remind them of how badly they had messed up.

“Y/N, wait!” He shouted as he followed her outside. She ignored him and kept walking. He picked up his pace until he caught up with her, grabbing her arm to stop her. She spun around to face him, face red as she looked at him.

“What do you want?” She spat.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m leaving. I can’t sit through this. Rich is right. This is all a mistake. We can’t do this.”

“You were the one who came up with the idea,” he told her. He felt bad knowing that he had been the one to lead her in that direction, but he wasn’t ready to admit that to her yet.

“I know, and it was a bad idea. We can’t do this.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that we need to fix this. We can’t lie like this and we can’t expect everyone else to lie for us.”

“Okay, hear me out,” he began, now panicked as he realized that Y/N might very well backtrack and tell everyone the truth. “We can’t fix this now. Do you realize how bad it will look if we admit that we did this? We admitted that we were married, we’ve been acting happy about it all day. If we decide to take back what we said about this being a happy marriage, it’s going to be worse for us. I’ve seen what people are saying about you.”

“You have?”

“Yes, I’m not the bad guy here, at least not in the fandom. But I have seen how they’re already tearing you apart for this.”

“Which is why I have to tell the truth. We have to get an annulment.”

Rob stared at her, knowing that she was right in a way, but he wasn’t willing to risk what all of this could do to his career. He had to convince her that their original idea was still the best one.

“Think about it,” he started. “We tell the truth now, after that crap that we just posted this morning, do you really think it’s going to go over well? First, we made a stupid mistake by getting married; then, we lied about the fact that is was a mistake; we avoided the topic only to go on the record saying that we were thrilled to be together. Now you want to take it all back and admit what really happened? Everyone is already questioning you. Do you want to make that worse?”

“It sounds worse when you say it out loud.”

“I’m just looking out for you,” he lied. “You’re the new girl. Yes, we both made this mistake. But, right now, you’re the only one that people are questioning. I don’t want this to get worse for you. I don’t want this mistake to ruin your life.”

“My life is already ruined,” she replied. “I’m married to a man that I don’t even know. This isn’t just a mistake. This has already ruined my life.”

“How do you think I feel? Yes, this looks bad for me; yes, this has ruined my life too. I’m the guy who got remarried three months after his divorce to someone he just met. I’m just trying to think of a way to not let this ruin more of our lives.”

“This will never work. No one will buy it, especially when we have friends who treat it as a joke. When people realize that we lied, it’s going to be worse.”

Nothing he was saying was helping the situation. Rob needed her to just go with it. He needed her to at least try to pretend that it was okay. He understood why she was freaking out; he also understood that this could all very well fall apart very quickly. He needed something to keep her in on this. He had to offer her an ultimatum.

“Okay, look,” he said, “what if we have a long-term plan?”

“What?”

“I know I said that I wanted to avoid separation or divorce at all costs. Obviously that’s not going to happen. We can’t stay in a lie forever.”

She nodded, seemingly calming down as she waited.

“What if I asked you to just- not say anything and just go with this for… I don’t know… six months?”

“Six months?” She asked, caught off guard by the realization of how long that was.

“Six months. In six months, we get a divorce. Then it will all be over.”

“You said you didn’t want to be divorced twice in one year.”

“I don’t. But, in six months, it will make more sense if this ends. No one expects a shotgun wedding to last anyway, especially when we just met. Six months would make sense. That way, we don’t have to admit that we got married on accident, we don’t have to admit that we lied about anything, and we don’t make ourselves look as bad.”

“I’m listening.”

“When the time comes, we just separate, announce we’re getting a divorce, and admit that we rushed into it. No one has to know anything else.”

“That could work…”

“I just- I don’t want to be the guy who rushed into something only to have it fail right away. I also know that you don’t want people to see you as some drunk chick who married the first guy she saw.”

“In six months; if we can pretend to be happy and look as if we’re trying, this will all die down, right? The divorce won’t really be a surprise to anyone.”

“That’s what I’m betting on,” Rob admitted. “We can say we’re separating on good terms, we can remain friends. I just feel like it would help to make us look better.”

“Yeah, I don’t want people to hate me,” she said. “Not when I’ve just started on this show and I want to stay on it.”

“Okay, so… can we do this? Can we agree on the long-term plan?”

She paused for a moment, looking him up and down as she considered. It actually sounded like a great plan in Rob’s head. He was pretty proud with how he had handled it. It made sense; no one had to admit to the lies. Y/N would get the divorce that she obviously wanted, and Rob would still avoid looking like a massive jerk over the part that he played. The time frame was a lot shorter than he wanted it to be, but he knew they couldn’t do this forever. He felt that his offer of sticking it out for six months was fair for both of them.

“Okay,” she said finally. “I think I can do that.”

“Good,” he breathed out in relief. “Now please, come back and join us for dinner. People are going to be watching our every move. We should be seen together.”

“Fine, but will you tell Rich to stop being such a jerk? He’s making this a lot more difficult than it already is.”

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

“So, now there’s a time-frame on how long your marriage will last?” Briana asked.

You let out a sigh, realizing it sounded pretty terrible. The group was back at the convention building, getting ready for SNS. You didn’t have a real reason to be here considering you didn’t sing; but Rob had convinced you to be seen with him as much as possible. ‘It will help make this marriage look legitimate,’ he had said. The marriage was legitimate on paper, and you hated that you had to make it look that way to save face.

“No one else had a better plan,” you replied. “Besides, I feel better knowing that there is an exact day and time that this will all be over with.”

“I don’t think real marriages have a time-frame,” she added.

“Luckily for me, this isn’t a real marriage,” you snapped in return.

“Hey, we’re getting ready to start,” Rob said as he stepped in front of you. “Are you still okay with hanging out?”

“Yeah,” you mumbled, “I’ll be backstage, cheering my husband on.”

“Thank you,” Rob replied. He reached over and squeezed your hand briefly. “I promise, it’ll be okay. People will buy it.”

You followed Rob and the rest of the group to the other room, finding a spot backstage to make yourself comfortable. You didn’t care to be here at all. You were pissed at Rob and your original attraction to him had faded quickly. You found it interesting how an accidental marriage to someone suddenly made that attraction non-existent. Currently, you couldn’t look at him without being extremely turned-off. You simply held onto resentment and anger toward him. It wasn’t helpful when you knew you had to act as if you were in love with him; and you realized that this was going to be a lot harder than you thought.

* * *

You listened from backstage as Rob’s band played. You were never familiar with them prior to this weekend, but you found yourself actually enjoying the music. You listened as some of the other actors joined them for songs, catching yourself swaying along to most of the songs as you sat in your seat. You sort of hated yourself for doing so, considering how mad you were at Rob. But, the music was catchy and actually really good. You decided it wouldn’t be so bad if, as Rob’s wife, you took a moment to enjoy his music.

The set-list went on and you and the others talked backstage; a few times you found yourself laughing at something someone would say, or engaging in actual conversations that didn’t involve the mess from the first day. For a moment, you had almost forgotten that you and Rob were in a pretty messed up situation.

As the band finished one song, you listened as Rob began to address the audience. He went on to thank the fans for all their support, then went into an entire spiel about what a crazy weekend Vegas con had been so far. You held your breath as you listened, having a slight idea as to what he was doing, but not really wanting to believe it.

“This next song is for my wife,” he announced. You heard the audience applaud him, which was actually a good thing considering you wanted people to believe in this whole thing. Regardless, your heart sank and your stomach twisted. Just hearing him say the word ‘wife’ to everyone in reference to you made you feel sick.

_Hey darlin’, what you doing here tonight?_

_Your eyes are shining bright as the sun_

_Hey baby, won’t you look at me tonight?_

_Won’t you make me feel like_

_I’m the one…_

He began to sing as the band played and you wanted to run away again. You didn’t know the song, but a part of you assumed it wasn’t a new one. You were more upset by the fact that he had obviously written the song for someone else; not that it mattered considering you weren’t really in love with him; but the fact that he had made such a stupid move to dedicate it to his fake wife irritated you.

There was also the fact that you had both agreed on not bringing this up or talk about it if it could be avoided. Right now, he was definitely bringing it up. You sat there as the song finished and the crowd cheered again, still sick to your stomach over the entire thing.

They finished the last couple of songs from the set and you stood up when the band made their way backstage. Rob made his way right to you with a huge grin on his face, probably pleased with how well the concert had went. When he got closer to you, his smile dropped.

“Why do you look so pissed off?” He asked.

“Maybe because you brought it up in front of everyone. I thought we agreed to avoid it if we could.”

“I couldn’t not dedicate a song to my new wife,” he argued. “I’d look like such an asshole if I just ignored the fact that we’re newlyweds.”

“Okay, please stop calling me your wife,” you replied.

“Well, you are.”

“I know that. But- just don’t say it so casually.”

“Why are you really mad?”

“Really? You don’t think that I have a whole slew of shit to be mad about?”

“Okay, yeah you do. But, come on, tonight was fun.”

“You shouldn’t have dedicated that song to me,” you said.

“What? You didn’t like it?”

“It was a great song,” you admitted. “A great song that you clearly wrote for someone who isn’t me.”

“To be fair, we just met. I haven’t had a chance to write anything for you.”

You rolled your eyes as you began to walk. Rob followed, grinning as he pondered to himself.

“I don’t know, I have some ideas. Maybe I’ll call your song, ‘ _Accidents Happen_ ’, or ‘ _What Happens in Vegas Should Probably Stay in Vegas_ ’. I’ll work out the details later.”

“You’re an asshole,” you mumbled as you made your way outside to the car that was waiting.

“You’re kind of being an asshole too,” he said. You stopped to glare at him for a moment. You had a feeling that this was going be a really long six months if you had to put up with this behavior from him.

“Yeah, well, I’m not the asshole who took a song that was probably written for his ex wife and dedicated it to his new, accidental wife in front of thousands of people.”

“Maybe I didn’t think that one through,” he admitted with a grin. “Will you just stop being so tense? No one even cared. They thought it was great that I acknowledged you. Who knows, maybe this whole sham marriage that we thought would ruin our loves will actually be pretty great for us in the long run.”

“You are out of your mind,” you argued as you got into the car. Rob held the door and leaned down to look at you.

“I’m telling you, this might not be as bad as we thought it would be.”

He glanced around at everyone standing outside. The rest of the cast was there, the band, and of course a few stray fans who were casually standing around.

“I’m gonna go out with everyone else,” he explained. “You’re welcome to join.”

“I’ve had enough embarrassment for one night,” you replied.

He gave you a weak grin before moving in closer to you. You froze, wondering what the hell he was doing and it only registered when his lips found yours for a chaste kiss. It shocked you, and you sat there dumbfounded by the movement.

“Just keeping up appearances,” he whispered before he stepped back and carefully closed your door behind you.

You held your hand to your lips as the driver pulled away. That had been unexpected. You hadn’t thought about the possibility that you’d have to engage in things like that if you wanted people to buy into this whole thing. You should have been pissed, or even disgusted by the kiss. Instead, you felt yourself blush as you thought about how soft and gentle his lips had been on your own. It’s not that you hadn’t ever kissed him before. Hell, the two of you made out the entire night leading up to the mistake. Now, it was different when you realized you had been completely sober for it. Now, you remembered very clearly what it felt like. You also sort of hated him for the fact that it had actually felt nice.


	6. Part 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bets are placed on how long Rob and Reader can actually keep this up. It is Vegas after all.

**Reader’s POV**

You had hoped that by Sunday you would finally wake up from this nightmare. Unfortunately, it had all been very real and you were still replaying the past few days in your head; well, as much of it as you could remember anyway. You wished there had been some tiny bit of memory from that night. At least Ruth had been able to talk you through what had happened; but you couldn’t help but wonder what drove you and Rob to do something so stupid. Not only that, but the rest of the weekend was spent making decisions that you couldn’t help but feel like were more mistakes that were only going to add up in the end.

You let out a sigh as you made your way to the greenroom that afternoon. One more day. One more day of dealing with this and you could go home and pretend that Rob and this mess didn’t exist. You mostly wanted to pretend that the kiss from the night before didn’t make you feel a certain way.

Your bad mood became a lot worse when you walked into the room and noticed Rob. Under any other circumstances, you probably would have gotten along with him really well. In fact, you had made it no secret that you found him attractive when you first met him. Right now though, just looking at him made you feel on edge. You figured it had a lot to do with the fact that you had done a stupid thing and he just happened to be involved in that thing. It didn’t help that he seemed to be talking you into this entire situation a lot deeper than you wanted to go.

You opted to ignore him, for his own sake really. While you had agreed to go along with this entire lie, mostly to save your own ass, you figured you didn’t need to pretend to like him when you were around the people who knew it was all a lie.

You sat down just as Rob and Rich and the band were leaving the room to start the con. You didn’t once look up at Rob as he left, but you couldn’t help but feel as though he was staring right at you. Why did this have to be so awkward?

“So, I heard a little rumor that a couple of our friends got married a few of days ago.”

You glanced up quickly when you heard Jensen’s voice. He and Jared were standing right in front of you. You hadn’t even noticed them when you walked into the room, probably because you were too busy being pissed off at Rob.

“We didn’t even get an invite,” Jared said with a smile.

“Oh, hey guys,” you mumbled, suddenly feeling very guilty and even more embarrassed than usual.

“You look absolutely miserable,” Jared pointed out as he plopped down next to you on the couch.

“Am I that obvious?” You chuckled.

“Rob clued us in on the entire thing,” Jensen added. “I have to say, no one in this group has ever done anything quite like this before.”

“Well, you know me. I like to stir up trouble.”

“No, you don’t,” he replied. “Which is why we’re concerned.”

“Did he tell you everything?” You asked.

“Everything,” Jared confirmed.

“So, then you understand that we made a mistake and we are currently trying desperately to fix that mistake?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say this decision is ‘fixing’ anything,” Jensen replied as he threw up air quotes. “But, yeah, we understand the basics of what is happening.”

“I’m such and idiot,” you whined. “I still don’t understand how this happened.”

“Well, Robbie is pretty irresistible,” Jared laughed.

“The thing that I’m worried about here,” Jensen cut in, “is that the two of you know you messed up, yet; you’re choosing to stay married when you could easily have the entire thing annulled and it would be like it never even happened. Now, he explained your reasoning; and I guess it makes some sense, but I’m wondering how the two of you plan to keep this up.”

“What do you mean? We’re just going to stay married, be seen together once in a while, whatever it takes.”

“So, when you go home after every convention weekend; to your individual homes, mind you; what are people going to think when they find out that you’re not living together?” Jared asked.

“I- I haven’t really thought that far ahead,” you said honestly. “Are you trying to talk me out of this? Because I have my reasons for going along with it. Rob and I are very firm on our decision.”

“No, we’re not trying to talk you out of it,” Jensen replied. “I figured you had your reasons for living a lie. But, I do have to ask one thing- and please, be completely honest with me.”

“What?”

“How long do really think you and Rob can stick it out for? Are you one hundred percent on the whole, six months thing? Or have you thought about the possibility that you might get sick of him sooner?”

“We decided on six months, so I guess we’re aiming for that. Why are you asking me this?”

“I just need to know what the realistic expectation is here.”

“Hey, that’s cheating,” Jared cut in, looking annoyed as Jensen pressed you for more.

“What is going on?” You squinted at Jensen, confused now by his change in behavior. They were up to something, and you didn’t like it.

“Nothing’s going on,” he sputtered nervously in response.

“You’re lying. I can tell when you’re lying.”

“Someone started a pool for everyone to bet on how long the marriage actually lasts,” Jensen admitted. “I haven’t put in my bet yet, so I’m just trying to see if I can get the upper hand on this one.”

“You’re betting on my marriage?” You shouted, suddenly irritated. “You and who else?”

“Um, everyone,” Jared said.

“You can’t do this! Does Rob know about this?”

“Yeah, he wasn’t too thrilled either. I don’t know why you’re both getting so worked up over it though when it’s a fake marriage anyway.”

“It’s still my life,” you replied as you stood up. You looked angrily at the two men, offended that they would involve themselves in something as cruel as this. This entire situation may seem like a joke to everyone, but you weren’t taking it as lightly as they seemed to be. “It may have been a mistake, but the rest of you treating it like a joke doesn’t help.”

“Relax, it wasn’t our idea,” Jensen said.

“Was it Rich?” You asked. It certainly sounded like something he would do just to spite you and Rob. Out of everyone, he was the least supportive of all of this.

“No, It was Stephen,” Jared answered.

“Stephen?” You shouted. “I don’t think I’ve even talked to that man once since I’ve been here. What the hell?”

“I will say,” Jared added, “Rich was the first one to bet. He was pretty excited about it.”

“This is not okay,” you reminded them, “I’m going to put an end to this.”

* * *

When Rob finally had a free moment later that day, you tracked him down. You wanted to know why he wasn’t putting a stop to this ridiculous bet that everyone had going on. You approached him during lunch, noticing the way his usual cheery expression faded when he noticed how irate you were.

“Did you know about the pool that Stephen has going on?” You asked angrily. You darted your eyes in Stephen’s direction, watching him cower in his seat when he realized he had been caught.

“Yeah, I know about it,” Rob sighed. He too glared at Stephen.

“You’re going to let him do this?” You asked.

“I tried to talk him out of it,” Rob replied quietly. “He doesn’t listen.”

You scoffed at Rob, realizing that he wasn’t threatening enough to scare people.

“Stephen,” you began, “give everyone their money back and put an end to the bet.”

“No way,” he replied.

“You can’t take bets on this. This isn’t a joke.”

“Are you kidding?” He laughed. “This entire weekend has been a joke. You two are a train-wreck waiting to happen.”

“That doesn’t doesn’t mean that you gamble on our mistake.”

“It’s Vegas,” he reminded you. “This is the perfect thing to gamble on.”

“No, you need to stop this right now. It’s not funny.”

“You know what is funny?” He began. “What’s funny is that the rest of us are basically being forced into going along with this stupid lie. I didn’t have a choice. I have to sit back and pretend that my friend isn’t making a huge mistake. We all have to live this lie with you for six months, or however long it actually lasts. So, I think you can live with this.”

You looked back at Rob in defeat, almost as if you were waiting for him to step in. He didn’t though. He stared down at his lunch, avoiding eye contact with you completely. It seemed as if the group was going to keep their stupid bets in place. You knew you couldn’t press Stephen too much on dropping the entire thing; in fact, you quickly realized that everyone here now held a lot of leverage over you at this point. They could decide at any point that they were no longer willing to play along. You realized that any one of them could easily send this entire thing crashing to the ground. As you glanced back at Stephen, you understood that he understood this. He grinned arrogantly at you and you could tell that he was challenging you. The worst thing that could happen at this point was for someone to come out and admit that this marriage had been a mistake and a lie. You would look worse than you would have if you had admitted it was just a mistake and annulled it right away.

“Okay,” you said quietly. “I get it. You keep your stupid pool going. Has everyone already placed their bets?”

You glanced around at everyone else sitting around the table; most of them staring down guiltily as you called them out. No one had to answer verbally for you to know that literally everyone here was involved.

It hurt your feelings a bit that you had become this big of a joke here; especially when you had tried so hard to fit in and overcome your nervousness around people. You looked back at Rob, who looked equally as hurt as you felt. While you had started to feel really alone in all of this, you now realized that you weren’t alone at all. While you still sort of despised him for this mess, you knew that he was the only one who was treating this as seriously as you. You and Rob were in this together; which was a strange thing to feel scared about considering that you were married.

“Fine,” you continued, “this is great. There’s nothing quite like having some fun at our expense. I hope you all enjoy yourselves.”

“Y/N…” Rob began. Before he could say anything else, you were walking away in a huff. You didn’t want to put up with everyone’s insensitivity to your situation, and you certainly didn’t want to listen to Rob. The best thing for now was to just get through the last day and avoid them all.

* * *

At the end of a long and exhausting day; you grabbed your bags and made your way to the airport alone. You just wanted to go home and pretend that this wasn’t real at least until the next convention.

You arrived at the airport early enough to be one of the first passengers to board the flight. You found a window seat immediately and made yourself comfortable as you waited for the flight to fill up while you stared out the window.

You ignored everything around you, until you heard a familiar voice speaking to you.

“Y/N?”

You looked over and felt your heart drop when you saw Rob standing there.

“Hey, we’re on the same flight,” he said with a smile.

“Oh goody,” you replied sarcastically. “What are the odds?”

“Should I sit with you?” He asked nervously as he watched the other guys in the band move past him.

You glanced around at the other passengers on the flight. The band and a few of your co-stars were on it, as well as some people who definitely looked as if they had just been at the con.

“You probably should,” you said quietly.

Rob joined you and you turned to stare out the window again, trying to avoid even looking at him. This interaction would certainly not come across as a normal one between two people who were supposed to be happy newlyweds. Already you could feel eyes on you. You and Rob were already under scrutiny for the fact that you had gotten married right after having met for the first time. If you wanted to avoid having people think that this was all a farce, you knew you had to suck it up and play along.

You turned to face him, offering him a smile as you reached over and took his hand in yours. You felt him tense up for a moment and you gave him and yourself a moment to ease into it. Eventually, you were holding hands as naturally as you could given the situation.

This wasn’t so bad. This, you could handle for now. The idea of having to show some sort of PDA with him was not sitting well with you, but you figured that this was enough to at least keep people from saying that you didn’t really love each other. While it were certainly true, you had to make them believe otherwise.

“Hey, I’m sorry about Steve,” he said suddenly. “I really did try to tell him that it wasn’t cool. But, he kinda had a point about the whole, ‘forcing our friends to lie with us’ thing.”

“Yeah, I know,” you muttered. “I was just- annoyed that everyone is making us look like a joke.”

“Well, we kinda are,” he smiled.

“Do you know what everyone bet on?” You asked.

“It’s pretty top secret,” he whispered. “No one is telling anyone how long they think we’ll last.”

“Hmm,” you hummed as you leaned back in your seat. “Maybe we should really fuck with them and aim for seven months.”

Rob smiled almost sweetly at you and you couldn’t help but return the smile. While you seemed to not like him most of the time, you were a bit indifferent right now for some reason.

“You sure you can put up with me for that long?” He asked.

“You’re right,” you replied, trying to pretend that you weren’t feeling some sort of affection for him right now. “I’m surprised I’ve been able to put up with you for the past few days.”

You felt him squeeze your hand slightly as he laughed.

“Alright, I think we’ve got this marriage thing down.”

“Well, I’ve never been married before,” you reminded him. “But if all I have to do is continuously be annoyed by you, then I’ll be pretty good at it.”

“Speaking of,” he started as he leaned in a bit closer to you. His voice got lower as if he didn’t want anyone to overhear the next thing he would say. “I’m not trying to be pushy or anything, but I’m just wondering when you’re going to change your last name on social media.”

“What?” You replied, frowning at him.

“I mean, this would all look a lot more legitimate if you actually went along with it.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” You said through gritted teeth. You squeezed his hand tighter out of anger over the subject. You watched him and let out a silent ‘ow’ and tried to pull his hand away. “This is not the time to bring this up.”

“Changing your name to mine will show people that we’re happy and that we didn’t make a mistake,” he explained, still trying to loosen your grip on him.

“No. No. This was a mistake. We are not happily married. Does this look happy to you?” You said, trying to keep your voice low as you pointed to your own face.

“No, you don’t look happy…”

“I am very not happy.”

“Okay…”

“Look I’m not changing my name just because we accidentally got married. Married women keep their own last names all the time.”

“Well, my ex wife changed hers when we got married-“

“Oh? Did she really? Your ex wife did? That’s great. Would you like to have another ex wife right now? One that refuses to change her last name?”

“No.”

“Then I suggest you drop it,” you spat. You loosened your grip on his hand and he pulled away.

“Fine. I’m sorry I brought it up, even if it could help us out.”

“It’s not up for discussion,” you said as you pulled your headphones out of your bag and focused on putting them on. More than anything, you wanted to drown out the sound of his voice. It was strange how the two of you had managed to share a split second of something that was like affection, only to have him ruin it like this. If he was going to be this annoying for the next six months, you weren’t sure how you’d manage.

“Sorry. But maybe you could at least consider it,” he said as he folded his arms across his chest and gave you a pouty look.

“Hey, can you do me a favor?” You asked with a hint of annoyance.

“What?”

“Please stop talking.”

* * *

Upon returning home, you realized that there were a lot of things that you and Rob hadn’t considered when it came to staying in a fake marriage. The Las Vegas con had ended days ago, and already people were talking about why you were never seen with him.

He had been busy doing some shows around the city, shows that you weren’t at; and you had been spotted out and about on your own. You were currently deep into Twitter, reading just about every post that mentioned the two of you since your impromptu wedding just days ago. You had both assumed you could get away with the lie easily, but it seemed that the fandom wasn’t so convinced.

You spent some time arguing out loud with some of the posts on Twitter until you realized that you had probably had enough of social media for one day. You were so wrapped up in what people were saying about you, you nearly forgot that you had more important things to worry about.

You reached for you laptop that was already open on the website that you had been browsing for rental places. Before leaving for Vegas, you had scheduled some renovations to be done on your house; which meant I’m would be unlivable for some time. You hated the idea of renting when you already owned a place, but you couldn’t live here while the work was being done.

You were in the middle of looking at a small apartment when your phone rang. You frowned when you saw Rob’s name show up on your screen, but you answered anyway.

“Hello wife,” he said happily when you answered. “How is the lovely Mrs. Benedict today?’

“That’s not funny,” you muttered. “I already told you that I’m not changing my name.”

“Fine, sorry.”

“What do you want?” You sighed out loud.

“I was just thinking… it might be a good idea for you and I to be seen together at some point.”

“Wow, it’s like you read my mind,” you replied, “I was literally just reading about our lack of interaction when you called.”

“Yeah, it’s getting pretty rough. If we don’t actually act like a married couple, they’re going to catch on.”

“What do you have in mind?’

“The band is playing tonight,” he explained, “you should come. It’s just a small show, but enough fans will see us together, it’ll help.”

You didn’t really want to go. You didn’t even like his band. You hadn’t really heard them enough to know if you liked them, but you just assumed that you didn’t. It probably had a lot to do with how irritated you were with Rob.

“I don’t know,” you argued as you mindlessly scrolled through more places on your computer, “can’t we just go on a fake date or something?”

“I’m telling you, this will be way more effective. Besides, it would look a lot better if you came out to support your husbands music.”

“Fine,” you mumbled, “you can pick me up later then.”

“Just send me your address. I’ll get you before seven.”

“Uh huh,” you mumbled, not really paying attention as he spoke.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“Nothing.”

“You seem distracted.”

“Oh,” you replied, “I’m looking at apartments. I need a place to stay while my house is being renovated.”

“You’re gonna rent when you already own a house?”

“I know it sounds stupid, but I don’t have much of a choice here.”

You continued to click pictures of an apartment you were looking at, sort of annoyed as the conversation reached an awkward pause.

“You could stay with me?” Rob offered after a moment. The fact that his statement came in question form was enough to tell you that he probably hadn’t meant to offer at all.

“What? That’s a terrible idea. Even you don’t sound sure of it.”

“No, I’m sure,” he insisted. “I didn’t mean for it to come out that way.”

“I’m not going to live with you,” you replied.

“I was just offering,” he mumbled. “It’s not like it would be weird. I have an extra room. Besides, it could help us look more serious.”

“I don’t want to be serious,” you reminded him. “I don’t want any of this to be happening.”

“It was just an offer,” he replied sharply. “God forbid your husband tries to help you out.”

“Thanks, but no thanks.”

“Whatever,” he sighed. “Look, I’ll just see you in a few hours.”

“Fine. Oh, one more thing,” you added.

“What?”

“Stop calling yourself my husband.”


	7. Part 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader enjoys herself at the Louden Swain show, much to her dismay. Rob realizes that he an Reader have very different agendas with this entire thing.

**Reader’s POV**

“Are you ready for this?” Rob asked as he held his hand out to you.

You sighed heavily and took his hand, allowing him to help you out of the car. Already, there were people outside of the venue watching.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” you replied with a forced smile.

Rob had picked you up as promised and was not escorting you into the venue where his band was playing. You glanced over briefly to the fans waiting outside as he hurried you past them. You couldn’t help but notice their whispers and stares as you walked by. You knew what they had to be thinking and saying, and tonight was your chance to quell those thoughts. ‘It’s an acting job,’ you told yourself. ‘I can do this.’

You squeezed tightly onto Rob’s hand and before you knew it, he had you safely inside. Once you were out of view of fans, you let go of him and immediately made your way to the bar as he met the rest of the guys to rehearse. You knew you would need a lot to drink if you were going to be able to get through tonight.

You had already downed a few drinks when the guys finished rehearsing. Your head was buzzing and you looked up at Rob with a grin as he approached you at the bar.

“Take it easy,” he warned,. “you and I and drinking don’t mix well.”

“I’ll remember that,” you replied as you took a slower sip of your drink.

“A few more minutes and it’s showtime,” he said as he glanced at his watch. “You have to at least pretend to like me a little bit or this won’t work.”

“I’m a better actor than you,” you chuckled.

“Maybe, but you tend to let your unwarranted annoyance of me get the best of you.”

“It’s not unwarranted,” you replied. “I have every reason to be constantly annoyed by you.”

“Yeah, this is going to fail spectacularly.”

Since you were already a few drinks into your night, and possibly a lot less annoyed by him than usual, you stood up from your seat and moved closer to him. You flirtatiously places a hand across the back of his neck and ran your fingers along the skin there. You gave him a playful smile as you placed your other hand against his hip, pulling him close to you. You pressed your body against his, stopping just as his face was within inches of yours.

“Am I failing now?” You whispered as you stared into his blue eyes.

You saw him swallow nervously as his eyes surveyed you.

“No,” he muttered in return.

“Like I said, I’m a very good actor.”

You leaned in and placed a kiss to the corner of his lips, not quite willing to make it a real one right now. He held his breath as your lips met his skin and you smiled against him. When you pulled back after a moment, he seemed to be caught off guard by your action. You assumed this meant that you were believable at least.

Once you had the reaction that you wanted from him, you pushed him back from you and returned to your drink.

“Okay, yeah,” he stuttered in return, “that’s good. Just- do that and people will believe us.”

“I got this,” you said. “Trust me, no one wants to avoid looking like an asshole more than I do.”

“Alright, I’m just- I’m gonna go,” he said, fumbling through his words as he was trying to decide if he should move or not.

“You do that,” you replied with a wink as you took another sip.

You watched his expression; confusion mixed with a bit of shock as he turned from you finally to walk away. He made it a couple of steps before he clumsily bumped into a chair. You chuckled to yourself as he made his way backstage. It was almost cruel on your part, especially since you were still very much annoyed by him and very much regretted that any of this was even happening. Maybe it wasn’t best to make all of this that believable, not to the point of confusing the man, but you figured you might as well have a little fun now that you were stuck with him for six months at the very least.

Now that the band was out of sight, the main doors were opened and you watched as fans piled into the space from your seat at the bar. A few of them noticed you and recognized you from the show; making small talk and just saying hi. You made time for a few selfies that were requested until the excitement of seeing you there died down.

As the band took the stage, you let out an audible sigh when you realized you’d really have to sit through this entire thing. You knew you should give them a chance, but your irritability over Rob was still getting the best of you. You turned back to your drink as Rob began to speak into the microphone, noticing that it was already empty. The drinks were going down easily tonight and you considered slowing down until you remembered that the show had just started. You still had a couple of hours of sitting here, pretending that you were in love with the man who ruined your life to get through. You stared at the bartender as the guys went into their first song and waited for your drink to be refilled.

The sound of the music was overwhelming. They were playing something upbeat and the thoughts running through your head were drowned out by the noise of the guitars and drums, Rob’s voice filling your ears as he sang. You may have been a little tipsy by now, but even you could recognize that he actually had a great voice. You held onto your 4th or 5th drink, you had lost track by now, and turned in your seat to watch them as they played. The least you could do was act interested, especially when you figured there were fans who were probably watching you and judging you, wondering why you weren’t swooning over your rockstar husband right now. You made sure to smile in the direction of the stage as you gave your best ‘I’m in love with that man’ gaze toward Rob. If there’s one thing you knew about acting, it was that the performance is all in the eyes.

Halfway through the set, and maybe another drink into it, you found yourself involuntarily smiling and swaying along to the music. They were actually really good, and the excitement from the crowd was infectious. You figured you had enough to drink though when you caught yourself watching Rob while he performed. The same feelings that you had for him on that first day that you met him seemed to be coming back for some reason. Sure, you had spent the past few days absolutely turned-off by him, but right now you couldn’t help but to notice how good he looked up there on stage. There was something about that man with a guitar, voice gravely as he sang, t-shirt soaked in sweat that had your heart racing.

You shook the thoughts from your mind when you realized they were invading. It was probably just all the drinks that you had tonight. You couldn’t be attracted to your accidental husband like this, not when you were still so angry at him. The last time you drank like this, you ended up extremely turned on by him, which ultimately led to you marrying a complete stranger and not even having any recollection of the entire night. You stared down at your glass before deciding to set it aside. Maybe it was time to stop.

The band finished off with one more song, Rob taking the chance to help make this all a little more believable by dedicating it to you. You bit your lip and cringed, hoping that it wouldn’t be a repeat of the whole SNS fiasco in which he played a song that was definitely not meant for you. He announced it as something called ‘Taxi Driver’ and you made sure to pay attention as they played. At least this song seemed a little more generic and unlikely to have been written about anyone in particular. Still, you enjoyed it and you found yourself smiling at him as you watched the band finish their set.

The guys thanked the fans and made their exit when they were done. You watched as Rob immediately made his way toward you. You stood up nervously and waited for him, knowing that it was show time. If you couldn’t convince anyone that the two of you were legitimate right now, then you were sure you’d never be able to.

Rob grinned at you as he got closer and you froze, wondering what you should even do at this point. You had been so sure of yourself earlier, but all those drinks had you feeling tipsy and unable to think straight. He caught on quickly and took control of the situation. You gasped as he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you in against his body. Your eyes darted to his face; flush and damp with sweat. Something about it made you weak in the knees; but you reminded yourself that you had had a lot to drink.

Without a word, he leaned down and brought his face close to yours, pressing a gentle kiss against your cheek. Again, his lips felt just as nice as you remembered them being from the time he kissed you after SNS. The idea of it scared you a little and you considered pulling away, until you remembered what you were doing here in the first place. You were an actor, you could do this. You ignored the fact that you desperately wanted out of this and focused instead on treating this as if it were a TV or movie set. At least he was keeping it PG. You leaned into him, turning your face slightly so that you could place another kiss against the side of his mouth just as you had done earlier. You still couldn’t bring yourself to make it any more real than that, but you hoped that it was enough to keep people from questioning the validity of this entire thing.

“You smell like whiskey,” Rob pointed out when you pulled away from him. He kept his hands at your waist, smiling at you as if to make it look like he was in love with you.

“And you smell like beer and sweat,” you replied. You bit your lip, wishing you hadn’t said it. Not because you felt that he would be offended, but because it’s all you were thinking about. Even with the pressure of knowing that people were watching your every move, and the fact that your nervousness was starting to emerge despite the drinks that you had indulged in, you couldn’t stop thinking about how he looked right now.

“Is that a turn off for you?” He asked with a grin.

You swallowed hard, wondering if he had caught onto you. You considered telling him that everything he did was a turn off for you, but your pretend moment was interrupted as fans swarmed him; waiting for autographs and selfies. He stepped away from you and you took a moment to compose yourself. Why you were so worked up right now, you had no idea. You blamed the liquor as it seemed to be the main cause of things that got you into trouble lately. Certainly it couldn’t be Rob himself, not when he was the last person that you wanted to be around.

* * *

“Did you have a good time at least?” Rob asked as he focused his eyes on the road ahead of him. The night had ended late and he insisted on driving you home rather than risk someone seeing his wife wait for a cab.

“It actually wasn’t so bad,” you replied.

“You did really well,” he pointed out. “People were congratulating me, no one questioned anything. I think we can get away with this.”

“Good,” you mumbled. “All I want is to get through this without anyone even knowing that it was a mistake.”

“I’m just glad you quit drinking long enough to not make any more mistakes.”

“Hey, I’m still allowed to have fun, especially if I’m forced to hang out with you,” you replied with a loopy grin.

“I’m just saying, the last time you and I drank around each other, crazy shit happened.”

“I know, I was there,” you reminded him.

“You’re lucky I stayed sober. Who knows what would have happened if we were both drinking tonight.”

“How much worse could it get?” You asked.

He glanced over to you, giving you a look and you laughed as you rolled your eyes at him.

“Okay, fair. It could get worse I suppose.”

The two of you remained silent for the rest of the drive, the awkwardness creeping back in as you both sat there. All you could think about was the situation you were in. Every day you woke up thinking that it all had to be a nightmare, but every day it become more and more real. As he pulled up in front of your house, you thanked him and reached for the handle of the door.

“Hey, what are you doing tomorrow?” He asked.

“You mean today?”

“Well, okay, yeah it’s late. What are you doing later today?”

“Well, that depends if I have a hangover when I decide to wake up,” you laughed. “But, I have no plans.”

“Maybe we could go on a fake date.”

You smiled at him despite the fact that you told yourself that you had had enough of him for now.

“What do you have in mind?” You asked.

“Dinner maybe.”

“I don’t know,” you sighed. “Don’t you think we’ve spent enough quality time together for one week?”

He pursed his lips at you, averting his eyes from your stare. You quickly realized that you might have hurt his feelings, although you weren’t sure as to how. Surely he didn’t want to be around you any more than you wanted to be around him at this point.

“You’re right,” he responded. “It’s probably best to save it for another time.”

“Alright, sounds good,” you said softly. You opened the car door finally and let yourself out before this got any more awkward. “Hey, I guess I’ll see you in Seattle.”

“Yeah, in a week,” he said with smile.

“Just give me a call if we need to do any more damage control between now and then.”

“I will.”

“Oh,” you said before shutting the door behind you. “Don’t make a habit out of calling me though.”

**Rob’s POV**

The drive home after dropping Y/N off gave Rob a bit of time to think. Mostly he was thinking about the way she had just shot him down on possibly being seen together again. It shouldn’t have hurt his feelings as much as it did; after all, she wasn’t even his real wife much less his girlfriend. She had made it a point to remind him that everything about this was a mistake. She wasn’t happy, and she had no reason to be at this point. But, her refusal to even have dinner with him left him feeling a bit bummed.

He thought about the way she had pulled him close to her at the venue, the way she kissed the corner of his mouth with those soft lips laced with a hint of whiskey and cherry flavored lip gloss. He had tried to brush it off as nothing; just two actors playing their roles. But, he knew he had given himself away by his reaction to that. He had been more intoxicated by that simple thing than he had gotten after a couple of shots in an attempt to calm his nerves.

He thought about the way she had pointed out that he smelled like sweat, the way her eyes seemed to take him in as her breath caught when he pretended to be affectionate with her. For a brief moment, he thought that maybe she wasn’t acting; but the way she insisted that they not spend any more time together than necessary reminded him that he was wrong. She really was just that good at pretending. He at least knew that they could get away with this charade as long as they kept up the pretend chemistry that they had together tonight.

He told himself that he shouldn’t feel too hurt by the way she had shut him down. This entire thing was accidental. Neither of them wanted to be married and neither of them knew the other at all. Still, there had been some sort of attraction there at some point when they had first met. He had been telling himself that it was what got them into this position in the first place. The alcohol had only given them each the courage to go for the other, never mind the fact that they just didn’t know when to stop until it was too late.

He glanced at his hand on the steering wheel, catching a glimpse of that fake wedding band that he hadn’t taken off since the mistake happened. He frowned as he berated himself for the fact that he had gotten a bit too excited over Y/N’s behavior from tonight and mistook it as something even slightly real. It didn’t matter if he was still feeling that same attraction to her that he did on that first day he met her. It didn’t matter that he had spent a few days telling himself that maybe this marriage didn’t have to be a complete sham after all. All he was doing was lying to himself. Y/N couldn’t stand him, and she made sure to let that be known.

Rob figured it was time to stop trying to see if they could eventually work out as a couple while they tried to get through this marriage without raising any eyebrows. He knew that he had to stop telling himself that there could be something there despite this massive fuck up. There was no way that Y/N was ever going to think of him as anything more than a mistake.


	8. Part 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Seattle convention rolls around, and Reader and Rob never considered that they’d find themselves stuck rooming together. Maybe they can make the most of it.

**Rob’s POV**

Rob made a point of steering clear of Y/N for the week. He knew that she was irritated with him enough as it was, it was probably best not to make things worse. Regardless, her showing up at the Louden Swain show had gone over well. People were talking, that was certain. Some were still questioning the entire thing, but others were standing up for them and their marriage. They must have been better actors than Rob thought, because a lot of what was being said was how affectionate and in love they seemed to be at the show. Well, it was a lot easier for Rob really as he didn’t find it difficult to pretend to like Y/N. She on the other hand, had been convincing despite the fact that she despised him.

He was waiting for her in the lobby of the hotel in Seattle. She had been on a different flight than him, but he figured it would look good if they at least checked in together to make it at least look like they were checking into the same room.

She had already been short with him when he texted her to check where she was and he hated that he bothered her so much. Yes, the situation was a shitty one, and he knew that all he could do at this point was try his hardest to make her happy. A happy fake wife would make or break the next six months.

When he saw her come through the main doors, he stood up to greet her; smiling as he watched her walk toward him. She however, did not look anywhere near thrilled to see him. She held a permanent frown as she reached him, which only caused Rob’s usual good mood to fade rather quickly.

“You could at least pretend to be happy to see your husband,” he whispered as he led her toward the front desk.

“Why should I? There’s no fans at this hotel,” she pointed out.

Rob glanced around, realizing that she was right. But it still wouldn’t hurt to act as if they liked each other in any public setting. He decided against even mentioning it.

“Hey,” Rob said as he greeted the receptionist, “we’re checking in.”

“Separately,” Y/N added as she focused on her phone, ignoring Rob.

“Yes, separately. Mine should be under… McCrotch,” he began, now feeling regretful that he decided that they should check in together. “Pat McCrotch.”

“Ew,” Y/N cried out, looking up from her phone as she overheard the name that Rob sometimes used at hotels.

“It’s an alias,” he breathed out in frustration.

“God, I hope so,” she replied, still with that look of disgust on her face. “No way I’m going to be Mrs. McCrotch from here on out.”

“You said you weren’t changing your name anyway, honey.”

“You’re such a child,” she responded as she rolled her eyes. She went back to her phone and Rob made a mental note to not let Rich choose his aliases for him anymore. They seemed less funny when he had a fake wife judging him now.

“Okay, I have a single room, king size bed for you and a… Mrs. McCrotch.” The woman said, trying to keep a straight face.

“E-excuse me?” Rob stuttered. “Say what now?”

“Is this your wife?” She asked as she nodded toward Y/N.

“Uh, yes. But we should have separate rooms.” He took note of her judgey stare. “It’s a little complicated.”

“Yes, hello,” Y/N cut in, looking a bit frantic. “Please tell me that I have my own room. Y/N Y/L/N. Which is my real name by the way… because I’m not a child.”

The woman began to type, frowning after some time of staring at the screen.

“Nope, sorry. Nothing under that name.”

“This is a mistake,” Y/N replied.

“Well, you say you’re married. Whoever booked the rooms booked one room for… Mr. McCrotch and his wife, so…”

“Okay,” Y/N said, now looking very flustered. “Fine, I’ll just book my own damn room.”

“I’m sorry, there are no other rooms available.”

“Really? Because you didn’t do the typey thingy on your computer. How do you know?”

“Because it’s a busy weekend and I know that we are fully booked.”

“Fine,” she replied through gritted teeth. She turned and elbowed Rob, obviously upset. “Will you just check us in? I’ll figure this out later.”

Rob watched her as she gathered her bags and walked off in a huff, leaving him to deal with this new mess for now.

“I was trying to,” he mumbled in return when she was out of earshot.

He looked at the woman who was helping them and noticed the concern in her expression.

“We’re newlyweds,” he said with a smile, as if that was supposed to make all of this look normal.

* * *

Y/N spent a good amount of time making phone calls to straighten out this mess while Rob kicked back on the bed and mindlessly flipped through channels on the TV. She sounded even more frustrated and Rob wanted to avoid dealing with that at all costs.

She finally hung up and faced him angrily.

“So, apparently the fact that this is all just a joke never did reach the Creation team,” she explained. “As far as they know, this is legit, which is why they booked us a room together when they realized we got married.”

“Well, it is legit,” he mumbled in return.

“I mean, they don’t know that it was an accident.”

“Probably best to keep it that way.”

“I know,” she sighed. “Still, I can’t stay in the same room as you all weekend.”

“I’m a pretty decent roommate.”

“I’m sure one of the girls will let me stay with them,” she replied as she started to text away to anyone she could think of.

Rob continued to stare at the TV, not really bothered by the fact that they were in a new mess. He had no desire to try to fix anything; there was nothing to fix really. He listened to her beg whoever was on the phone with her at any given moment, laughing to himself at the way she seemed to be shot down each time. He was mostly offended. What was so wrong with the two of them having to share a room for one weekend? He already told her that he was an okay roommate. He could be respectful and he understood boundaries. Besides, rooming together could help a lot with their little ploy to convince people that they were happy.

Her attempts at finding new arrangements for the room situation fell short, just as he knew they would. He knew his friends well enough to know that they were going to make this as difficult for the two of them as they could. Y/N tossed her phone onto the bed and sighed, looking at Rob with more frustration present on her face.

“No one will let me room with them,” she pouted.

“Really? Even though they know the situation?”

“They’re all saying the same thing. We did this, so we need to handle it together.”

“That sucks.”

“You’ve got to ask one of the guys if you can stay with them.”

“Do you really think they’ll let me?” He asked, raising a brow. “They’re all getting a kick out of this. Besides, everyone has that bet going on. I’m pretty sure a lot of them are just waiting for us to fail. Sooner rather than later. What better way to ensure that than to make me room with my wife that hates me?”

“I don’t hate you,” she replied quietly as she sat on the edge of the bed. “I just- hate the situation and maybe I’m just not happy with you.”

“You act like this is all my fault.”

“I would not be in this situation if it weren’t for you. I don’t do things like this. You on the other hand, you seem like the type of guy who gets his kicks out of marrying women.”

“That’s not fair,” Rob replied angrily. She was saying anything she could to get a rise out of him and it was working. Yes, the situation sucked, but it wasn’t entirely his fault. “As I recall, Ruth said you were the one who suggested getting married in the first place. So maybe it’s your fault. Maybe you took advantage of the fact that I was wasted for your own benefit.”

“How does this benefit me?” She asked with a laugh.

“I don’t know; but when we get divorced, you’re not taking anything of mine.”

“Shut up,” she spat. “You’re the worst.”

“Well, you’re certainly not a joy to be around yourself,” he replied flatly.

“Do you ever just shut up?” She snapped.

Rob did just that, knowing that he was probably pushing more than he should. They were both irritated and tired; and if he learned anything from his last marriage, it was that he needed to shut up when he was told to, especially when he was trying to keep Y/N from divorcing him before their set time. She could easily end this and he would end up looking like an even bigger jerk than her.

They sat in silence for a while; neither of them wanting to say more of what was really on their minds. Rob knew that if he had to deal with this for much longer, he’d very quickly get over the fact that he still had a bit of a crush on her. Maybe he’d get to a point where he no longer wanted to try to stay with her when things died down a bit. Now, he was doing the math in his mind, frowning when he realized that they had only been married a little over a week and six months was starting to look like an eternity.

“I’m going out,” she announced as she stood up and headed for the door suddenly.

“Where are you going?”

“I need a drink.”

“Did I marry an alcoholic?” He joked. “Never mind, I know the answer to that.”

“Takes one to know one.”

“Oh, that’s not childish.”

“I can’t do this,” she said. “From now on, I’m making sure that they don’t make the mistake of getting us a room together just because we’re married.”

“Aw, come on honey, don’t leave” he smirked in return. “It’s our first fight.”

“You’re an asshole,” she called out as she opened the door.

“And you’re a terrible wife,” he shouted after her.

“Good,” she replied as she let the door slam closed behind her.

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

Any sort of adoration that you might have been feeling toward Rob in any given moment all but washed away as you stormed out of the room and found your way to the nearest bar. You had been trying really hard to hide the fact that you still found him attractive and almost pleasant sometimes. The worst thing you could do was possibly end up liking him in the midst of all of this. You thought you could at some point though. But his behavior right now left you feeling upset. You seriously wondered how long this could really last if he insisted on pushing your buttons.

You stuck to having one drink, just to take the edge off after that minor argument with Rob. No matter what, you were stuck with him; in every sense of the phrase. He was your husband, whether you wanted him to be or not. Either way, this marriage was real. It became even more real when you agreed to go along with it. To top things off, you now had to share a room with him for the weekend. You figured it would be best not to make matters worse by drinking too much.

You knew there was no way for this to get worse, but you decided against finding out the hard way.

After having enjoyed your one drink, you were fairly cooled off, so you headed back up to the room. Feeling sort of bad over the way you were constantly at his throat even though he was obviously going out of his way to be nice to you and actually make an attempt at making this marriage look legit, you realized that you shouldn’t be so hard on him.

He was still a nice guy. A nice guy who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time with you. You knew an apology concerning your behavior lately was due, and you really hated that you knew this. It was hard enough for you to admit when you were wrong, it was even harder to think about admitting that to him.

When you got to the room, you swallowed your pride and unlocked the door, hoping that he had cooled down as well. This weekend needed to run smoothly for your own sanity, even if that meant you’d be the first one to say sorry.

Your flight had got in sort of late as it was, so you weren’t really surprised to walk into the room to find most of the lights off. Your eyes darted toward the bed and you were suddenly nervous as you realized what sharing a room with him would entail. He wasn’t there however, and you scanned the room until you found him curled up on the couch. He opened one eye to look at you.

“Could you keep it down?” He asked. “I’m trying to sleep.”

You rolled your eyes at him as you retrieved pajamas from your bag. You made your way to the bathroom to change.

“Get in the bed,” you called out to him. “You don’t have to sleep on the couch.”

“I was being a gentleman, even though I don’t think you deserve the bed.”

After changing quickly, you emerged from the bathroom and crawled into bed.

“Fine, I offered.”

He leaned up and stared at you curiously.

“Really? You’re just gonna let me sleep in the same bed as you.”

You shrugged, trying to seem unaffected by it. In reality, you felt bad for him. You didn’t like to see him curled up uncomfortably on the couch like an actual husband who had been kicked out of the bed. He hadn’t done anything wrong really, so you couldn’t make him stay there. You figured that if you could work at making the weekend go well for yourself, maybe he deserved the same thing. The two of you were under enough pressure as it was.

“It’s not like we haven’t woken up together before.”

“I guess you’re right,” he mumbled as he stood up, grabbing his pillow before making his way toward the bed. “The last time was probably as bad as it could ever get.”

You chuckled softly, watching him as he climbed into the bed next to you. Already, you felt your anxiety kick in. Why exactly? You weren’t sure. You chalked it up to nervousness over sharing a bed with someone you didn’t know.

“Besides,” you began, “I gotta save the whole ‘kicking you to the couch’ thing for when this marriage really starts to go south.”

He gave a genuine laugh in return and you turned off the lamp with a smile. You laid down and closed your eyes, now feeling oddly comfortable next to him. Of course this was never how you wanted things to be with him, but you figured you could do your part to make him feel a little more comfortable as well.

You decided against apologizing tonight. The two of you seemed as okay as you could be, so what was the point?

* * *

The next morning you woke up early and forced yourself from bed. Rob was snoring softly on his side of the bed, back turned to you. The night hadn’t been all that bad. You had slept well and you were at least grateful that he seemed to be a decent bed partner. Your biggest concern now was how things were going to run every morning. You were used to your own space; which meant you always had your own bathroom where you could shower as long as you wanted to and proceed to walk around your room in nothing but a towel. All of that was definitely out the window starting today.

You decided to shower before he woke up, hoping to avoid any moment of awkwardness that could come out of something like this.

By the time you were showered and dressed, you left the bathroom to find Rob awake. He gave you a soft smile from the bed and you instantly felt yourself blush. Most people didn’t ever see you not completely put together; and right now, he was getting a glimpse of you without makeup and having your hair done.

“I figured I’d shower early so you had time to get ready too,” you explained as you dug through your bag for your blow dryer.

“Thanks, I appreciate it.”

He got out of bed, letting out a dramatic groan as he stretched. He passed you on his way to the bathroom and you glanced up at him. He looked really good right now; the way his hair sat atop his head in unruly curls, the look of sleep still present on his face… why you continued to find him attractive in random moments like this confused you and sort of unsettled you.

You turned from him just as he closed the door behind him and you let out a deep breath. ‘Pull yourself together,’ you thought to yourself. ‘You definitely don’t need to be attracted to your husband.’

* * *

You were in the middle of running a brush through your hair when he walked out of the bathroom after a quick shower. Your eyes found him as you heard the door open and you paused as he emerged, wearing nothing but a towel as he began to fumble through his bag. You couldn’t stop yourself from staring. You sat there, trying to not make it obvious as you took in the sight. He was fit for an older man. You noticed your heart rate speed up as you stared at his muscular back, those toned arms, every inch of his body still damp from the shower he had just taken.

“Does this bother you?” he asked when he noticed you staring.

“I’ve seen you naked,” you replied quickly, now wishing you hadn’t said that when the image of him naked and stumbling around your room in Vegas popped into your head.

“Yeah,” he grinned. “We’ve seen a lot of each other.”

“I’ve also had sex with you,” you blurted out. Again, why were you saying this?

“Well, if there’s one thing I vaguely remember about that night, it’s that,” he said with a laugh.

“Me too,” you replied nervously. Why it was so nerve wracking to talk about this stuff with someone that you had in fact been with, you couldn’t understand.

“Hey, look at that. We both sort of remember something at least.”

“I was very drunk though.”

“So was I.”

“But I do remember that,” you said softly as you looked away from him. “Somewhat.”

“I like to think that entire night wasn’t all bad.”

“It wasn’t,” you replied. “from what I do remember, we had fun at least.”

“Yeah, we did,” he smiled.

He waited for a moment, still smiling at you and you returned your attention to him. He was still standing there in his towel, holding his clothes in one hand. You noticed him smirk at you and you wondered if you had been staring again. You didn’t want to seem obvious, but he was distracting and you were certain that he knew it.

“Well, now that things are sufficiently awkward, maybe we should get to work at some point,” you said finally.

“Just let me get dressed. We’ll go together.”

He returned to the bathroom and you let out another deep breath. You had forgotten how attractive he was and you knew that this weekend wasn’t going to be easy for you if this was how every morning was going to go. You just had to remind yourself that you weren’t doing this because you might still be attracted to the man; none of that mattered now that you were in this mess. Going along with the marriage was strictly meant to save your careers and reputations.

You felt sort of bad as you thought about it. If the two of you hadn’t accidentally gotten married, you could have possibly dated the guy. It wasn’t meant to be in the long run. There was no way that a fake marriage could ever turn into something real, not when you were both still angry with each other and not when you were jumping blindly into something this serious with someone you didn’t know.


	9. Part 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s time for Reader and Rob to face the fact that they’re not the only ones who are caught up in their mess. How they choose to handle dealing with those around them who aren’t clued in to the ruse is something they have to figure out together. Also, it might be a good idea for them to actually get to know each other.

**Rob’s POV**

Rob certainly didn’t expect anyone to warm up to the idea that he and Y/N were definitely going through with this, not after a little over a week. He did hope that his friends would at least accept their decision. He thought that the entire joke of everyone placing bets on how long they would last had actually been a joke that had lost its appeal by the time the Seattle convention happened. He learned rather quickly that he was wrong.

“Just so you know, Rich is out of the betting pool,” Steven explained as the band set up to rehearse that morning.

“What?”

“He gave you a week. Obviously it’s going better than he thought.”

“That’s nice,” Rob mumbled in return. “Glad to know my suffering is still amusing.”

“So, you are suffering?” Billy asked curiously. “Is she really that bad? She seems nice.”

“What did you bet on?”

“I can’t say,” Billy replied.

“Just for the record, she’s not… bad. She’s actually fairly pleasant when she wants to be. But, I guess she’s more unpleasant because of the fact that I’ve ruined her life.”

“You’ve ruined each other’s lives,” Mike cut in. “This has been one bad idea after another.”

“I know,” Rob acknowledged. “But staying married is the choice we made, and we really think it’s the best decision. We just gotta make it through long enough to make it believable.”

“You ever consider maybe trying an actual relationship?” Billy mused. “I mean, you’re married anyway. Obviously neither of you want a failed marriage…”

“Are you suggesting I try to make things work with my wife?”

“This is a weird conversation,” Steven mumbled as he shook his head.

“Just so you know, I’ve considered that. I actually liked her. It’s sort of tough to make things work with someone who hates my guts though.”

“She can’t hate you that much,” Billy argued. “We all saw how she was all over you that night.”

“She was drunk.”

“Well, yeah. But even before that, she was staring at you that entire day.”

“Look, I messed up any chance I had with her the minute I put a ring on her finger,” Rob replied with a sigh. “I thought that she could be someone that I could be interested in, maybe someone I could start dating… someone who could help me move on after my divorce. Now, I’m just someone else’s mistake and I’ll be divorced again before the year is over.”

“I’m just sayin,” Billy shrugged in return, obviously uncomfortable by where the conversation had gone. “It doesn’t hurt to still try to see if maybe she’s that someone you were hoping she was.”

“Yeah, well, I’m just sayin,” Rob added, “it sounds nice and all, but it’s not easy when she hates me.”

“I don’t think she hates you at all,” Mike said. “The situation maybe; but maybe she just needs to warm up to you. Remember, she doesn’t know you at all. She knows nothing about you. All she does know is that you’re the guy who somehow convinced her to marry him.”

“I know,” Rob mumbled in return. “This is all really fucked up. But, I’m trying.”

“Just- go slow with her. Make this easier on her.”

“I’m trying,” he reiterated. “I go out of my way to be nice and thoughtful, but everything I do pisses her off.”

“Well, stop pissing her off,” Mike continued. “Be even more nice and even more thoughtful. Buy her a gift or something.”

“Why are you being so pushy?” Rob asked as he glared at his friend.

“Yeah Borja,” Billy cut in. “What did you bet on anyway?”

“I’m not telling,” he replied. “I will say, it would really help me out if you at least tried to stay married for as long as possible though.”

Rob shook his head in disgust. He didn’t know what was worse at this point; that he had a wife who hated him, or that he had every friend of his betting on this mistake.

* * *

 

In between panels and autographs and photo ops; Rob made a point of seeking Y/N out when he could. He knew that they weren’t necessarily on great terms; but the morning had been surprisingly pleasant and they engaged in nice conversations throughout the day that didn’t end in her yelling at him or storming out. He wanted to enjoy that while he could, so he made sure to check in on her occasionally. He was also taking a cue from Mike in that maybe it wasn’t a bad idea to make sure she was doing okay. He didn’t care about what anyone had bet on, he just knew that he wanted to make this work for as long as possible if it meant he could avoid another divorce. Overall, that was a bad way to think about it, he knew that. There was no way she was going to stay married to him; but he held on to the thought that anything could happen at this point.

Not only did he actually want to be around her because of his still present crush on her, but he knew that it also helped this whole thing look a lot more real. He hoped throughout the day that maybe others who weren’t in the loop about the entire thing would look at them and take note of how affectionate they seemed; or more accurately, he hoped that people would look at him as an amazing husband. That way, if and when this marriage ended, maybe he wouldn’t be the one to look like the jerk.

He found her later in the afternoon again; most of their interactions had been quick hellos and forced kisses on the cheek to keep up appearances, but now she was sitting on the couch and scrolling through her phone with a frown.

“What are you doing?” He asked cautiously. He wanted to take the advice of his friends and at least try to get along with her better. Most of the time though, he was just unsure of how she’d react to his questions. Today had gone well so far, so he wanted to avoid pushing any buttons.

“I’m still looking at apartments,” she frowned. “This is harder than I thought it would be. I’m going to end up in a hotel when I get back.”

“I mean, I offered you my place,” Rob reminded her. “That’s still on the table.”

She sighed and put her phone down, looking right at him as she pondered.

“Wouldn’t that be weird? Me staying at your place?”

Rob shrugged in return.

“I don’t think it would be. It’s just a friend helping out a friend.”

“Are we friends?”

“I’d like to think so. I’m friends with everyone here. I know we kinda seriously skipped the basics of friendship… but I’d still like to be your friend.”

“You know I don’t hate you, right?”

“Sure,” he chuckled in return. She had a funny way of showing how much she didn’t hate him.

“Really, I don’t. I’ve spent the past week or so blaming you and I shouldn’t. We both got us in this mess, I admit that.”

“Okay.”

“So, yes. We can be friends. You’re not as annoying as I act like you are.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

“So, the whole… staying at your place thing? Would that complicate things?”

“How could this get any more complicated?” He laughed.

“I just, don’t want to step on your toes or be in your way.”

“You won’t be. Besides, I already said that you living with me even for a short amount of time can actually help us if we still want to make this marriage look real.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“So, anyway, I’ve got an extra room, you’re welcome to it. For as long as you need.”

“Thank you. I’ll think about it. Maybe if the two of us sharing a room this weekend goes well, I’ll be more comfortable with that idea.”

“No problem,” he replied with a smile. The conversation between them was still going well and it helped him to relax a little bit. “I just- I know this is difficult, and I know I fucked up. Staying married was mostly my idea, so I want to make things easier for you if I can.”

“I appreciate it.”

She gave him a warm smile in return. Not the usual forced smile that she had been giving him since the accidental wedding, but an honest smile. For once, Rob thought that this entire thing might not continue to be miserable for both of them.

“So, think about it,” he continued.

“I will.”

“You ready to show off our acting chops this weekend?”

“I am,” she replied. She stood up to join Rob now that the rest of the band and Rich were heading out the door. It was her cue to follow them as she would be the first panelist of the day. She reached out a hand, a lot less hesitantly than usual, and Rob grasped onto it. Still, even after everything and after the way she had been treating him, the contact with her made his heart beat a little faster. He always assumed that the longer she treated him badly, the easier it would be to get over his crush on her; but right now he knew that it hadn’t worked. The best he could do at this point was make it all look like an act. He could easily pretend to be in love with her regardless of the fact that she was his wife that really didn’t want to be his wife. He could play along because he still felt that rush when she looked at him or smiled at him or touched him.

They walked out of the room together, hand in hand, and Rob wondered how bad it could really be if he might actually really like his accidental wife.

* * *

 

**Reader’s POV**

“Why did I not consider the possibility that this entire thing was going to affect other parts of my life?” You said out loud, mostly to yourself. Briana and Kim were sitting close by and they perked up in interest as you spoke. When you realized you had someone’s attention, you used that opportunity to vent to them.

“I mean, obviously my family found out about it. I got phone calls and texts the next day. I mostly ignored a lot of it until I got home. It’s still a thing.”

“What did you tell them?” Briana asked curiously.

“I told just told them what we’ve been telling everyone. Rob and I fell in love and eloped. Most of them don’t buy it.”

“Why didn’t you just tell them the truth?” Kim asked. “They are your family.”

“I panicked,” you said with a nervous laugh. “Besides, based on the disappointment that they are expressing over my marriage, I assume the disappointment of finding out how and why it happened would be even worse.”

“They’re not supportive, I assume.”

“Not at all. My mom is mostly text yelling at me annul it.” You breathed out as you set your phone down, not wanting to deal with it anymore.

“What did you say about that?” Briana asked.

“I told her that wasn’t happening. Then I asked if she and everyone else wanted to meet him.” You cradled your face in your hands, overwhelmed at your own behavior, and actually surprised at how upset your mother was over this. You thought she’d at least support you, maybe even want to meet the man that you married on a whim. There was none of that though, and you began to feel even more disconnected from your family than usual. “She basically told me to stay away until I got myself right.”

“I’m sorry,” Kim added. “That’s rough.”

“It’s okay,” you replied. “Can’t please everyone. Besides, I’m sure Rob’s family is just as upset with him.”

As if you speaking his name had cued him, Rob walked into the greenroom, followed by the band.

“Hey, Rob,” Briana shouted to him. He made his way toward the three of you, a questioning look on his face as he approached. “So, we have to ask, how has your family reacted by the news that you’ve eloped?”

“What?” He asked. “Why is this even a topic of conversation?”

“Because my family is still pretty pissed off by the entire thing,” you replied. “It’s been over a week and my mom is still insisting that I made a mistake and I need to annul this. Obviously, she’s right… but that’s beside the point.”

“Oh,” Rob replied, eyes growing wide as he too realized that the two of you hadn’t actually talked about this. “Um, my family has actually been pretty great about it.”

“Really?” You asked in disbelief.

“Yeah. My mom and my sister have really been bugging me about introducing you to them. I know that’s awkward and still a touchy subject, so I’ve just been trying to avoid it.”

“You never said anything.”

“No. I know. I just didn’t want to pressure you into that. That’s a big deal.”

“Rob, yes this is a big deal. Neither of us have even told our families what really happened.”

“I- I couldn’t do that to them,” he replied softly. “Not after everything with my ex. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. I understand. But, you should have told me that they’ve been wanting to meet me.”

“I didn’t want to put that on you.”

“Wow,” Kim laughed. “The communication between you two is impeccable.”

You eyed her, unamused at her amusement over your situation. She was right though. You and Rob might be caught up in a lie at the moment, but even fake marriages should have some sort of plan. Maybe it was time for the two of you to actually take a moment to sit down and figure things out before they got any more out of control.

“Haha,” Rob mumbled in return. “Why don’t you try to make a marriage work with someone you don’t know?”

“No thanks,” she laughed as she stood up and walked away. Briana stood as well, glancing back and forth between you and Rob as she silently judged you for a moment.

“She’s right, you know. It wouldn’t hurt the two of you to maybe at least get to know each other and talk about things.”

You watched her leave, letting her words sink in. When the two women were out of earshot, you focused on Rob.

“Hey, you going to karaoke tonight?” You asked.

“Hadn’t planned on it.”

“Good. Because I think it would be a good idea for us to actually try to get on the same page about the details of this whole thing.”

* * *

 

At the end of the day, you and Rob decided to head out to dinner together. Normally, it was a thing for everyone at the cons to share meals as a group, but you knew that the two of you had more to worry about. Not only were you blissfully unaware of the fact that Rob’s family definitely knew about this marriage; but you also didn’t realize that they seemed to be eager to meet you. It was a completely different situation on your end, and you chose to ignore that part for now.

But, you were very much aware of the fact that this accident didn’t affect only you and Rob. You both had friend and families who were suddenly also involved. In the moments after the wedding, you never even stopped to consider that this could affect anyone but you. Right now, you understood completely just how serious this entire thing was.

You sat across from him when you arrived at the restaurant together. You took note of how he chose to dress up slightly by adding a waistcoat over his button up. He had also decided to wear his glasses, which you didn’t even know he needed. For some reason, you felt as if you couldn’t take your eyes off of him. He was generally an attractive man. Your attraction to him was a big part of the reason you were in this mess. Right now though, it was a bit harder to breathe as you took in the sight of him like this.

“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” you said, trying to start the conversation.

“Yeah, sometimes. I need them more often than not really.”

“I like them. It makes you look… I don’t know, sophisticated.”

“Thanks,” he smiled. You couldn’t help but to smile at his smile. It always seemed to warm and inviting.

“So,” you began, knowing that the more serious stuff needed to be discussed. “We need to figure out this whole family thing.”

“Look,” he replied. “I can just make up excuses for them not to formally meet you. It might get a little suspicious after a while, but I don’t want to make you do anything you don’t want to do.”

“No, Rob. We can’t do that. This is a mess. This is a huge mess that we got ourselves into.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“We’ve inadvertently involved a lot of people in this,” you pointed out. “We have co-workers, friends who never wanted to be a part of this. We have fans that we never even considered. Now, we have our own families who are thrown into it. I’m not saying that we should just be honest at this point; but if we’re going to keep going with this, we have to make it easier on everyone else that we’ve involved.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying…” you paused for a moment, wondering if what you had been thinking about all say was even a good idea. “Set up something with your family. I’ll meet them.”

“Really? You would actually do that?”

“Yes,” you replied, a little more sure of yourself. “They think you’re married to someone that you purposely married. I can’t be the person who makes this worse for them.”

“You don’t have to-”

“I know I don’t have to. I want to.”

Rob stayed quiet for a moment as he thought about how to react. You could tell that he was struggling with really wanting to ease his families minds but not upset you in the process. All you could do was reassure him that it was okay.

“Hey,” you asked suddenly, breaking him from his thoughts. He glanced up at you with those blue eyes that looked a bit more confused than usual. “Are we in this together?”

“I hope so. I don’t think it would work if we weren’t.”

“Alright, let’s make a deal,” you began as you reached your hand across the table, waiting for him to react. He did hesitate, but met you at your offer. He took your hand and held it there, waiting for your to finish. “We are going through with this. Together. We have six months that we have to make it through. I’ll do what I can to make this easier for you, if you’ll do the same for me.”

“Really? You’re not yelling at me about what an idiot I was anymore?”

You shook your head in response, “No. I’m done being mad at you. Being mad at you isn’t going to make this easier.”

“Okay,” he replied. “I can do that. If you need anything, I’m here. But, you really don’t have to make a thing out of meeting my family. I’m never going to ask you to do something that makes you uncomfortable.”

“It’s fine Rob,” you smiled. “At no point right now or in the future does anyone have to know what this really was. I mean, as long as our friends don’t open their mouths and let it slip. I can be your pretend wife if it helps to keep your family happy.”

“I would really appreciate that,” he smiled in return. Something like relief washed over his face and you felt better just seeing that.

“Good,” you grinned as you slowly slipped your hand from his. You sat back in your chair and let out a relieved sigh; the two of you smiling at each other as you realized you very suddenly had a sense of understanding of what the situation was. You had the basics of a plan, even if there was a whole lot more to work out as time went on. “Since I’m doing something nice for you, I would appreciate it if you let me stay with you when we get back home. Just until the renovations are done.”

“Well, I already offered-”

“I know,” you cut in. “I feel better taking advantage of your offer if I’m giving something in return. So, please, let me meet your family.”

“Well, they’re your family too, honey,” he said jokingly.

At any other given moment, you would have hated him for that comment. Right now though, you sort of found him endearing. He was trying a lot harder than you had been to make this work, and you acknowledged that.

The fact that you still had a crush on him had finally caught up to you. You had been using that feeling to lash out at him; mostly angry with yourself at the fact that you had played a major role in messing up any sort of relationship that could have been there had the two of you not done something so stupid. Now, you figured you could use your crush on him to your advantage. It would be a lot easier to get through this with everyone around you actually believing it if you just showed that you liked the guy. In the end, you were the only one who had to know that it wasn’t a complete act. He seemed to be willing to play along, much more than you had been.

“We’ve got a lot to talk about,” you added. “If we want to get through this with our dignity intact, I think we need a better plan that just- let’s pretend we’re happily married.”

“Yeah. What do you have in mind?”

“Maybe we should get to know each other.”


	10. Part 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob and Reader are actually getting along. It’s concerning for Rich, who lets it be known that maybe Rob needs to rethink some things.

**Reader’s POV**

You and Rob found yourselves caught up in a nice conversation. You sat at the restaurant for a couple of hours, just talking and getting to know each other the way you had wanted to. You learned a lot about him that you found fascinating, watching him with a smile as he spoke quickly and excitedly about topics that he found interesting.

If all of this wasn’t hard enough to deal with just given the tiny crush that you had on him, it was going to get a whole lot more difficult now that you were getting to know him. He was actually interesting, and you realized that you had a lot more in common than you thought. You sat quietly as he went off on some tangent about music and how he had met Eddie Vedder once. The joy on his face as he recounted the run-in with his idol was infectious; and you found yourself laughing along with his story, honestly intrigued with how it all played out.

“I’m sorry,” he said as he finished his retelling of what was obviously one of the more exciting moments of his life. “I’m talking too much.”

“Not at all,” you replied. “We said we needed to get to know each other. I’m enjoying getting to know you.”

“Yeah, but I still don’t know much about you.”

“Well, my life is hardly as exciting as yours,” you chuckled.

“Really?” He asked, raising a brow at you curiously. “I highly doubt that. You ever meet someone that you were ridiculously excited about?”

“Uh, you’re going to think I’m an idiot.”

“I won’t, I promise.”

“Well, I’ve been acting for some time…”

“Yeah, I’m a little familiar with your work.”

“Getting a part on Supernatural was always a dream. I just- wanted to be a part of that, you know?”

“Really?”

“Yeah, when I got the part, I celebrated. Not that I thought it was going to do amazing things for my career or anything, but it’s one of my favorite shows. That was my fangirl moment.”

“And then you got to meet Jared and Jensen,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, I maybe made an idiot of myself the first time I met them,” you laughed. “But, it’s all true. It really is like a family. They made me feel like a part of everything.”

“That’s great. I don’t think you’re an idiot about that. I fangirl when I see them too, and I’ve known them for years.”

“Then there was my first con, and getting to meet everyone else,” you continued, wondering if you should even go there right now.

“I hope not all of us disappointed you,” he said.

“I mean, aside from the obvious predicament, everyone has been so great.”

“I’m sorry,” Rob breathed out. You could see the look of disappointment on his face again. He was still wrestling with the fact that he had done this, and you knew he carried a lot of guilt over it.

“Stop saying you’re sorry,” you replied. “I was excited to meet you. I mean, you’re Chuck. Chuck has always been one of my favorite characters… back when he was just a prophet anyway.”

“Yeah, God’s a dick.” He smiled at you again and you felt better knowing that that moment of guilt had washed away if just for a moment.

“Anyway, I was maybe sort of surprised that you showed any interest in me. I was nervous. You made me more nervous than usual.”

“Well, if we’re being honest, I was attracted to you right away. I was pretty surprised myself that you were interested in me.”

“Don’t be. I just wish we hadn’t gotten so out of control that night.”

“Yeah, now we’re married before we even got to know each other.”

“I suppose it changes a lot of things,” you replied. “I mean, it would have been interesting to see what could have happened.”

“Right,” he said softly. “Because now it’s just a mess that we have to get out of eventually.”

You studied him, not saying a word. You wished that you could read him better, but having only somewhat known him for a week made it difficult to do so. You wondered if he meant that there was no chance that the two of you could see if this could be something, or if he might be hinting that maybe he still wanted to try to see if it was something. You figured that nothing would ever come of this though. The two of you had complicated things beyond repair at this point. Even if you chose to stay friends, once this was over, how could you be okay with being around someone who was a part of this? You told yourself that you might as well make the most of getting to know him now, because when this marriage ended, you’d probably never have that chance again.

“Yeah,” you agreed. “We just gotta get through this. Then, when the time is up, we can pretend it never happened.”

* * *

**Rob’s POV**

At the end of their dinner, Rob walked Y/N back to her room. He stopped at the door as she opened it, wondering what he should do next.

“You coming?” She asked as she turned back to him. She was halfway in the door as Rob stood there like an idiot before he remembered that they were sharing the room.

“Oh, yeah,” he replied as he followed her inside.

He stood near the door nervously, unsure of what to do again. He watched as she went right to her back, retrieving her pajamas and moving to the bathroom to change. Even the first night here together hadn’t felt this awkward. He assumed it was because they were so upset with each other and tired, neither of them really cared that the other was there.

Now though, he was anxious. They had just had a nice dinner and actually learned stuff about each other. He had wanted her to be boring and annoying, for his own sake really. But she wasn’t any of that. He had listened to her speak when he wasn’t busy yapping, and there wasn’t anything that she had to say that didn’t interest him. He stared at her through dinner, listening intently and taking in the features of her face; that smile, those eyes…

Rob knew he was getting in too deep. This little crush had gotten worse the more he got to know her. It didn’t help that she was being so nice to him lately. The idea of them sharing a bed again tonight was weighing on his mind a lot more than it had last night. There could be nothing worse than being that close to someone that he was trying to convince himself that he wasn’t crazy about. Well, aside from the fact that she had been immediately turned off by him after the entire wedding thing.

He stood there for quite a while, looking in her direction as she emerged from the bathroom and immediately got into bed. She looked at him with a grin.

“What are you doing?” She asked.

“N-nothing,” he stuttered as he made his way to his own bag. He fumbled for his own pajamas; hands shaking, heart racing as he over thought this entire thing.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. This is still just… a little weird.”

“Do you want me to sleep on the couch?” She asked.

“What? No!” He nearly shouted. Maybe he didn’t want to share the bed with her given his feelings for her, but he also did want to share the bed with her. He was confused by his own thoughts. “I couldn’t let you do that. I can take the couch.”

“Rob, I wouldn’t even let you take the couch last night when we were fighting,” she reminded him. “This doesn’t have to be weird.”

He gave her a crooked smile, thinking to himself how she had no idea how weird it was. At the same time, he couldn’t tell her that outright, not without giving himself away.

“You’re right,” he replied. “We’re just sleeping anyway.”

“Yeah, just sleeping,” she reiterated.

After Rob had changed and made his way into bed, he still couldn’t relax. Y/N turned her body to face him, making him even more uncomfortable.

“You sure you’re okay?” She asked.

“I’m fine. Honestly. I just- I don’t want to make this awkward for you.”

“But, you are making it awkward.”

“I’m sorry, I’ll try to relax.”

“Alright. Goodnight Rob.”

She turned away from him again and reached over to turn off the lamp. He could feel her move a bit before she finally got comfortable. Rob let out a breath that he didn’t realize he had been holding. He hated the idea of it; but he thought about how nice it could be to hear her say those words to him every night. He kicked himself over the idea. He knew damn well that he was reading too much into this and hoping even more than he should.

* * *

The rest of the weekend went smoothly. Rob and Y/N continued to talk a lot, still learning more about each other. She was being nice, and she hadn’t yelled at him at all for the remainder of the con.

If there was one thing that Rob definitely noticed, it was that his friends had certainly noticed this change between them as well. More so, it was Rich who noticed first.

“What’s going on with you two?” He asked as the group hung out in the green room on the last day. Y/N and the girls were out doing their last panel, and Rich made a point of bringing it up.

“Wow, did you just now realize I was here?” Rob joked. “You haven’t talked to me all weekend.”

“Don’t be an idiot, I’ve talked to you.”

“Stage banter doesn’t count. You’ve avoided me the entire time.”

“Well, forgive me if I’m still a little pissed that the two of you are still going through with this.”

“It’s not your business,” Rob reminded him.

“I’m just wondering why she’s not ripping your throat out still. Maybe I’m misreading this, but it looks as if she’s actually being nice to you for a change.”

“Yeah. We’ve done a lot of talking. We’re pretty serious about this, and we’ve decided to get along and get to know each other.”

“Don’t get to know your wife, man,” Rich said in disappointment.

“You’re so supportive. A true best friend.”

“I can’t support this, and you know why. I did agree to go along with it, but you can’t expect me to be okay with it.”

“Thanks, I think?”

“You can’t get to know her,” he said flatly.

“Rich, you’re the one who pushed me into getting to know her. At least enough to get laid. Now you’re changing your tune?”

“Well, I thought it would be good for you to get to know her… you know, back when you actually had a chance with her. You accidentally married her though. This is not going to end well.”

“I figure if we actually got along with each other, it would make this whole thing easier.”

“You would think,” he replied. “Until you realize that by getting to know her, you might actually start to like her. I’m not talking about the little crush you had on her either. I mean, you might really start to like her.”

“Okay? Is that a real problem?”

“It will be when your six months are up and she divorces your ass.”

Rob pulled back, surprised by the harshness of his words.

“Because she will divorce you,” Rich pointed out. “No woman is going to stay in a fake marriage forever, even if you want her to.”

“I do not want her to.”

“I know you well enough to know that you’re lying again. You like her already. You’re going to fall even harder for her. Then, you’re going to be devastated when it ends.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, well I know you better than you do. Usually I would laugh my ass off at anyone I know making this mistake. With you it’s different because I know how you are. You’re going to fall for her and this is going to get real bad, real fast.”

Rob shook his head quickly, trying to convince himself that Rich was wrong. Of course he could get through this without things becoming worse for him. He could stop himself from getting attached to her.

“I heard she’s meeting your family,” Rich added, looking even more disappointed than usual.

“Keeping up appearances,” Rob replied.

“You say that a lot. But, I guess if that’s what you need to tell yourself to hide the fact that you’re actually trying to wife her, be my guest.”

“I know what this is,” he replied angrily. He wasn’t sure if his irritation toward Rich right now was from the fact that he insisted on trying to tell him what to do, or if it was because Rob knew that he was absolutely right.

“Well, I just hope you keep reminding yourself. Because once you drag your family into this, you’re not the only one who is going to be heartbroken by the time this ends.”

Rich didn’t wait for a response. He turned and walked away before Rob could argue.

* * *

Rich’s words didn’t leave Rob for the remainder of the con. Even as he and Y/N settled in for the night, it was all he thought about.

He sort of hated his friend for the accurate words. It was like Rob to get too deep too fast in most cases. It certainly didn’t help that he had started in this mess actually liking Y/N. The fact that they were now married really didn’t make those feeling disappear.

He wasn’t stupid though, he knew that Rich was right. Maybe it was a bad idea to introduce her to his family; but Rob the two of them had been digging this hole so deep, he wasn’t sure if there would ever be a way for them to get out of it. He figured that all they could do at this point was just go with it, let that hole grow bigger until all of this inevitably crashed down around them, or they managed to get through it without anyone even knowing what it really was.

Perhaps there was no harm in trying to see if he and Y/N could actually hit it off though. The attraction had been mutual in the beginning anyway. Even with an accidental marriage, maybe they really could make it work. Maybe there wouldn’t have to be a divorce at all.

Rob sighed heavily as he dropped his had back against the couch he was sitting at. He was still really over thinking this. He was still wishing when he should just be focused on making this all seem believable. But, he couldn’t get her out of his mind this weekend.

Rich was right, after all. He was going to fall hard for this girl, and it wasn’t going to end well for him.

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

When the con was over, and everyone returned home, you made quick work of gathering some of the things you needed from your place. The day after you got home, you had people showing up; ready to get to work on your renovations. You really wished you hadn’t decided to have everything done all at once; or at least you should have found somewhere to stay in time.

You just hoped that staying with Rob wouldn’t complicate things even more. Sure, it would certainly help to make all of this look more legit if you were living together, so it only made sense that you went with it.

You threw some of your basic belongings into your car and made your way to the address that he had texted you. You were nervous as you thought about what it might be like to live with him, even for a short time. Hopefully he would turn out to be a really annoying roommate; at least then you could possibly get over your crush on him.

* * *

When you arrived at his place you were pleasantly surprised by the fact that he seemed tidy at least. You were having doubts about crashing his bachelor pad, but your worries faded quickly. He helped you with your things as the two of you carried them to what would be your temporary room. After getting everything inside, he gave you the tour.

“Help yourself to anything,” he said. “This is your place too, and I want you to feel comfortable here.”

“Thank you,” you replied. “I really do appreciate this.”

“Of course, no sense in renting a place when you already own your house. I’m happy to help.”

“It’s only because you accidentally married me,” you teased as you gave him a playful push.

“Nah, I would have offered regardless.”

“Really, even though you don’t know me?”

“I’m getting to know you,” he smiled. “And I like what I know so far.”

You saw him purse his lips, almost as if he regretted saying it.

“Well, if it’s okay, I think I’ll go make myself feel a little more at home.”

“You need help unpacking?” He asked.

“No, I’m fine. You just go back to what you were doing before I intruded.”

“It’s not an intrusion. Really, it might be nice to have someone around for a while. It’s a big house, and I’ve been alone for a long time.”

“I’ll try to be a decent houseguest then,” you laughed as you made your way back to your room.

“Just let me know if you need anything.”

* * *

You were in the process of organizing your clothes in the closet when you paused suddenly. You listened a little more intently as the muffled sound of music played through the house. You smiled to yourself, hanging up shirts as you listened, feeling yourself sway along with whatever record Rob had put on. When you had enough of organizing your space for now, you curiously went off in search of where it the music was coming from. Just as your search had begun, whatever song had been playing had died out. Still, you were curious to see what Rob was up to.

You wandered down the hall until you found him when you peeked into a room with the door wide open.

You stood at the doorway of what was Rob’s music room. You only knew this because he had pointed it out during the tour. It was filled with instruments and recording stuff. You noticed him standing at the stereo where he was already setting up a record to play. You felt as if maybe you shouldn’t be standing here watching him, but as the song began to fill the room, you couldn’t help but smile as you watched him begin to sway to the tune. He turned and glanced up at you; neither startled or offended that you were there at all. Instead, he grinned at you and waved you into the room.

_Our hearts_

_Are free_

_So tell me what’s wrong with the feeling_

_I’m a flower, you’re my bee_

_It’s much older than you and me_

_I’m in love, I’m alive_

_I belong to the stars and sky_

“You wanna dance?” He asked as he continued to sway to the music.

“I don’t dance,” you laughed in return. You felt yourself blush at the sight of him. He seemed happy and carefree, not something you were very used to.

“Really?”

“I don’t know how.”

“Come on, everyone can dance. You just need the right partner to lead.”

Before you could argue anymore, he was approaching you. He wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you close to his body and leading you to the center of the room which caused you to blush harder. With his free hand, he gripped onto yours and immediately began to move you into a slow dance.

You didn’t know if he had in fact been right about simply needing the right partner, but your bodies moved together in sync, both of you swaying to the music as he led you. You smiled up at him, realizing that no one had ever danced with you like this, and you were actually having fun.

_I want real love baby_

_There’s a world inside me_

_Got the preacher’s music_

_Just if for a minute_

He let go of your waist, leading you into a dramatic twirl under his arm right before he dipped your body unexpectedly. You giggled nervously; sort of surprised by the movement. He brought you back up to him, taking you in his arms, pulling you even closer to him. You nervously wrapped your arms around his neck and he rested his face against yours. You could hear him singing softly against your ear, which only caused you to gasp. Hopefully it hadn’t been noticeable to him.

_I want real love baby_

_Ooh, don’t leave me waiting_

_I’ve got real love maybe_

_Wait until you taste me_

_I want real love baby_

_There’s a world inside me_

“See,” he whispered against your ear once he was done with the verse. “You just needed the right partner.”

“Yeah, you were right,” you replied as you pulled back to look at him. You smiled softly at him; absentmindedly running your fingers against the nape of his neck. You felt his grip on you tighten; and for a brief moment, you locked eyes. You wondered if he was going to kiss you like you thought he was. Something about this particular moment, the way you had danced, and the way that he was looking at you; led you to believe that maybe there was something more here. He moved ever so slightly toward you and your breath hitched as you waited.

Just as you lost yourself in those blue eyes, the music began to fade out.

_I’m a flower, you’re my bee_

_(I want real love baby, there’s a world inside me)_

_It’s much older than you and me_

_(Got the preacher’s music, just if for a minute)_

_I’m in love, I’m alive_

_(I want real love baby, ooh don’t leave me waiting)_

_I belong to the stars and sky_

Before either of you could decide what to do in this moment, the song had ended. You stood there, wrapped in each others arms, nothing but quiet surrounding you now.

“Was I okay?” You asked. You felt yourself let out the breath that you didn’t realize you were holding in.

“You’re perfect,” he said softly as he pulled back a bit. You moved your hands from his neck, letting them rest on his shoulders instead. Of course this had become too much. You had danced and it had been fun, but you were an idiot to think that it was anything more than that. Just days ago, you had fought with him. Even though you had both made the best of the weekend that had started out as a nightmare, it was ridiculous to get caught up in a moment like this.

He let go of you then, pulling his hands away from you as he cleared his throat uncomfortably. You let go of him in return, taking a moment to steady your breathing.

“Uh, I talked to my sister yesterday,” he began, quickly changing the subject as the moment became awkward.

“Oh?” You asked, still sort of breathless as you tried to steady yourself.

“If it’s okay, my family would like like for us to go over for dinner tomorrow night. If you’re still up for it.”

“Yeah, of course. That was quick, but I’ll be there.”

“Thanks,” he said with a smile.

“Okay, I should go back to what I was doing,” you said awkwardly as you turned to leave.

“Was my music bugging you?”

“Not at all, keep playing it. I like it.”

“Good. If you need anything…”

“Yeah, I know. I’ll let you know.”

You made a quick exit before the conversation got more awkward. As you headed back to your room, you could hear that he had switched over to something else, and the sound of the music filled the house again.

Why that entire thing had even happened, you didn’t know. Maybe you shouldn’t have eavesdropped. The dance and the moment had been nice; but it had also turned weird really quickly. You scolded yourself for that brief moment where you thought he was going to kiss you; even more so for the fact that you sort of wanted him to. You had waited for it, probably too eagerly. It was obvious by the way he had quickly pulled away from you.

You felt something like regret and shame all at once. Of course he wouldn’t want to kiss you. You were just his fake wife and he had made it very clear that he was only sticking this out with you to protect his own image.

You decided that you needed to stop reading so much into this. Nothing good could come out of misreading the situation.


	11. Part 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader has to meet Rob’s family. There’s a bit of concern over the suddenness of the marriage, but Reader is more concerned that she has to lie to these people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is sort of choppy, but I hope it works. I also feel weird about using Rob’s family’s names, so forgive me if it reads weird without them.

**Reader’s POV**

When the day came around for you to actually meet Rob’s family, you were a lot more anxious than you expected to be. All day long you told yourself that it was just another acting job. It was another role that you had to play. You couldn’t shake the fact that it was so much more than that though. Not only were the two of you lying to unsuspecting fans, now your families were involved in this lie. You felt sick just thinking about it.

The two days that you had been staying with him had gone well. For the first time, you actually got along with him. You focused on that rather than the fact that you were about to completely lie to his family right to their faces as he drove the two of you to his sisters house in silence. He was just as nervous about this as you were, you could tell. You didn’t know him well at all, but as an eternally anxious person, you knew nervousness when you saw it in others.

When he finally stopped the car in front of the house, your anxiety got worse. Why were you going along with this again? You glanced over at him and he forced a smile. 

“Thanks again for doing this,” he said.

“We haven’t even gone inside,” you reminded him. “Don’t thank me yet.”

“You’ll be great.”

“I hope so.”

Rob got out of the car first and made his way around to your side. He opened the door for you and took your hand to help you out. You knew he was just keeping up appearances, but it was a nice gesture. You imagined that if the two of you had ever ended up in a real relationship, this was probably how he would act all the time.

Your nerves elevated as the two of you walked toward the house hand-in-hand. You could think of nothing worse than if his family found out that this entire thing was a lie, a mistake that got out of hand. You hadn’t even met them yet, but just knowing that they had apparently been supportive of Rob’s sudden marriage was enough to tell you that they were probably good people who only wanted Rob to be happy.

Your heart sank as you thought about the part you were playing in this.

* * *

You had sort of hoped that you were wrong about his family. You wanted for them to be the opposite of what you thought they were. Unfortunately for you, they were just as kind and wonderful as you had imagined.

They swooped in on you as soon as you and Rob walked through the door. You squeezed Rob’s hand and shot him a look, nervous now that you’d fuck this up. He gave you a smile as if to let you know that it would be okay.

Introductions were made and you tried to remember names as you met his mom, sisters, brother-in-laws, nieces, and nephews. It was as if they were all very excited to meet you, which only made you feel worse.

Dinner with his family was going surprisingly well though. Not once did anyone speak rudely to you or Rob about the suddenness of the marriage, and no one tried to talk the two of you into ending it now while it was still early on.

“I have to admit, we were all very shocked when we heard Robbie had gotten married again,” his sister explained. “Especially so soon after his divorce.”

You felt Rob tense up next to you and you squeezed his hand again. It was only then that you had realized you had never let go of him. Your nervousness left you clinging to him as you tried to get through this.

“Oh,” was all you could manage to reply.

“Was there something going on between the two of you before that ended?” She asked.

The question made you uncomfortable. In no world would you ever be that girl. You could never mess around with a married man, and you now realized that maybe the real third-degree was coming. They may have seemed supportive and kind, but perhaps this was turning into exactly what you hoped it wouldn’t.

“We didn’t even know each other then,” Rob answered. “I told you, we met for the first time at that convention and got married.”

“So, you really didn’t know each other?”

“Nope,” Rob replied. You could tell that he was becoming just as nervous as you were.

“Well, I suppose love at first sight does exist,” she replied.

“It does,” he said quickly. “We’re in love and I just hope you can all accept that.”

“We do. We’re very happy for both of you.”

The conversation shifted, turning into something a lot less focused on the suddenness of your marriage, and leaning more toward his family simply trying to get to know you. To be honest, you were a lot more uncomfortable by the way they were being so kind and asking you questions than you were when you felt as if they were questioning this whole thing. Still, you knew you had to play along for Rob’s sake. You only hoped that you wouldn’t grow too attached to these people. Nothing good was going to come of this when you and Rob finally decided to end it.

This was a lot more relaxed than your recent interactions with your own friends. You had thought for sure that the entire evening would be one giant mess considering, but it wasn’t at all. You sat back and listened to his sister tell embarrassing stories about him as a kid, making sure to keep some of those tucked away for future reference.

When his mother broke out the photo album, that’s when he decided that he had had enough.

“I’m leaving,” he said as he stood up and addressed the women. “I can’t sit around and watch you humiliate me.”

“Where are you going?” You asked quickly, wondering if maybe this was all too much for him. Perhaps you were getting too into your role and it upset him.

“I’m gonna go hang out with people who don’t make fun of me,” he said with a grin. He paused slightly before leaning down to place a kiss to the top of your head. Somehow, his acting still made you nervous.

You watched as he walked out of the room, still sort of anxious over where he was going and why he was leaving you alone with his sister and mother.

“Tea?” his sister asked.

“Yeah, that would be great,” you replied as you stood up and followed the two women into the kitchen. You sat at the table as they busied themselves with preparing drinks for the three of you. You could hear the sounds of children playing outside and you peered out of the kitchen window, watching as Rob played catch with some of his nieces and nephews. You smiled to yourself as you realized that you had definitely been too hard on him. You had accepted some time ago that this wasn’t entirely his fault. Now, you were both making an attempt to at least make this look legit together.

“So, how do you really feel about the fact that he was married before you until pretty recently? The divorce was pretty fresh we thought.”

“Yeah, I know. We’ve discussed that. I’m okay with it.”

“It doesn’t bother you that he married you so soon?”

“Not at all. I mean, we all have our hang ups. None of us are perfect.”

“What about you?” his sister asked. She studied you questioningly and you weren’t the least bit offended. Of course they had questions and concerns. Who wouldn’t.

“Well, I’ve never been married before. I’ve had a lot of people tell me that I definitely did it wrong,” you laughed.

“What? Getting married to someone you just met?”

“It’s not exactly a normal response to meeting someone for the first time.”

“Tell me, was the entire spur-of-the moment wedding something the two of you thought about at all?”

“Hardly,” you replied. You were being very truthful and the idea of it scared you. You had to choose your words a little more carefully.

“We just want to make sure Robbie isn’t making a mistake here,” she added.

You looked at her, realizing that there were people who actually cared about whether the two of you fucked up your lives with this. Something about these people made you want to be completely honest with them, but you knew you couldn’t to that to Rob. The two of you had an agreement.

“I hope he isn’t,” you replied. “I hope I’m not. I can’t promise anyone that I know how this will turn out months or years from now. But, I can promise you that I do love him. I know we rushed into this, and I know it looks bad. But sometimes you just know when it’s real.”

The two women smiled at you and you relaxed a bit when you realized that your lie had been believable. Still, you felt a knot in your stomach over the idea of having to lie to them about something like this in the first place. They were nice, and you liked them. You immediately regretted that you were here right now, lying to their faces. While you thought that you and Rob didn’t deserve to be in this position, you knew that these people certainly didn’t deserve to be dragged into it either.

“Well, I’m happy for both of you then,” his mother added. “I can see that you’re in love.”

“It’s sort of gross really,” his sister chimed in with a smile.

“Um, well, a lot of people think that we rushed into this. I suppose we did. But, we’re not getting any younger, you know?”

“Of course,” she smiled. “You and my boy will be good for each other, I just know it. Don’t let everyone else tell you that you’re rushing into things. Real love has no time restraints, I think the two of you will be just fine.”

“Thank you,” you muttered. “I really hope we made the right decision.”

“I think you did, People tend to overthink these things in the first place.”

“Who knows,” his sister added, addressing her mom, “maybe you’ll get more grand kids now.”

You whipped your head back to look at her as she said it. You certainly weren’t expecting that of all things.

“Oh, I do hope so.” his mother turned to look at you, with a smile. “His ex-wife didn’t want kids. I think that’s a big part of why it ended between them. Robbie’s always wanted a family. You see how good he is with kids.”

She nodded toward the window that you had been staring out of. Rob was still out there, playing with his nieces and nephews. You had to admit, the sight of that had sent your heart fluttering. You had always dreamed of children, and seeing a man who was good with kids was a weakness. You knew that wasn’t a possibility though. This was never supposed to happen in the first place.

“Yeah,” you said softly. “I hope I can give him that someday.”

It was a lie, and it hurt to say it to these women. They obviously meant a lot to Rob, and you hated knowing that you were going to end up hurting so many people because of your one mistake. You were too far in now to stop though. The lies that you didn’t want to say kept coming. There was no turning back, no matter how much to wanted to hit rewind.

* * *

“You’re still here,” you heard Rob’s voice say from behind you. “I thought for sure they’d scare you off.”

“They’re sweet,” you smiled as he stepped next to you at the sink. He dipped his hands into the hot, soapy water with yours and grinned at you. The two of you started to wash dishes together and he made a point of letting you know that they liked you just as well.

“They’re raving about you.”

“Really?” You smiled, quirking and eyebrow at him.

“They say you’re pretty and sweet and I’m the lucky one.”

“Well, they’re not wrong,” you chuckled.

“What did they say to you?”

“Nothing. Mostly they talked about how you and I looked so in love, and that’s how they knew that we weren’t rushing or making a mistake.”

You chose to leave out the discussion of the two of you possibly having kids together. You weren’t sure if that would be a touchy subject for him considering that they had mentioned that it might have been a big reason why his last marriage ended.

He chuckled softly in response, “Don’t mind them. They just want me to be happy, even if that means that they misread our fake happiness as something different from acting.”

“I like them. I like all of them.”

“They grow on you.”

“You’re great with your nieces and nephews.”

“I never had kids of my own,” he shrugged, “so they get a little spoiled.”

“Is that something you’ve ever considered? I mean maybe with your ex-wife?” You wished you hadn’t asked, especially since you already knew the answer. You didn’t want to say anything to upset him, but you sort of wanted to hear it from him.

“What? Kids?”

“Yeah.”

“Sure, I thought about it. She didn’t want that though, so it never happened. What about you? You ever think of kids? I mean, maybe someday when you get married for real.”

“Yeah,” you laughed. “I’ve always imagined I’d be settled down sooner rather than later. Have a good husband, a family. I think most people want that sort of stability.”

“Yeah,” he smiled. “Leave it to us to sort of mess that up for ourselves.”

He took the plate that you had been scrubbing mindlessly and rinsed it off. The two of you stayed quiet for a moment. This was a nice moment. Different from your usual interactions with him. You glanced over to him, noting the look on his face. He seemed sort of sad. You knew that this whole thing had to be a lot more difficult for him than it was for you. You were sure that he hated lying to his family.

“You know, you’re a pretty decent husband,” you said softly.

“You’re an okay wife,” he smiled. “Thanks for doing this for me.”

“Of course. I expect you to return the favor if my family ever decides to accept this.”

“I can do that.”

“Hey,” you began as you turned to face him. He was very close to you, and you realized that it didn’t make you uncomfortable anymore to have him in your space. “I meant what I said about you being a good husband.”

“Thanks, I’m really trying here.”

“I know you are. I also know that I really need to try.”

“Well, you could be a little nicer sometimes.”

“I know,” you laughed. “I’m just- trying to get my footing here. It’s not every day that I wake up married to someone I just met. I’m sorry I’ve been so mean to you. It’s not entirely your fault.”

“Apology accepted.”

The two of you brushed hands in the soapy water as you still pretended to be doing the dishes. Right now, you were thinking about how sweet he had been and how lovely his family was. You were thinking back to the moment you had shared with him just the other day that you thought was going to turn into a kiss that never actually happened. You were wondering what it might be like to kiss him now. You were also wondering why you were even thinking about it. Sweet or not, he was still just an accidental husband who didn’t want to be in this position any more than you did.

You both stood there, equally anxious now that you were probably each wondering what the other was thinking. You glanced up at him and he stared at you. You swallowed hard when you realized he was moving slightly closer to you, his eyes never leaving yours as if to check in with you to see if this was okay.

“What are you doing?” You said softly.

“We haven’t kissed the entire time we’ve been here,” he pointed out. “I think they’re going to get suspicious over our lack of interaction tonight.”

“Are you suggesting that I let you kiss me?”

“For appearances, of course.”

He moved toward you slowly still, just gauging your willingness to play along. You told yourself it was for the sake of the performance, and you tried to ignore the thought that maybe you actually really wanted this. You didn’t stop him, even though a kiss wasn’t necessary given the fact that you were standing here in the kitchen alone together. It wouldn’t be for appearances if no one saw it. That didn’t matter though. All that did matter was that you really sort of wanted him to kiss you.

Just as you could almost feel his lips against yours, you closed your eyes and waited; heart racing. As if on cue, someone entered the kitchen rather loudly; causing your heart to race faster simply from how startled you were. You turned your face from Rob, blushing now out of embarrassment. The entire moment had been ruined. Rob paused as he let out what seemed to be a frustrated sigh, and opted to place a soft kiss on your cheek instead.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Rob’s sister said from behind you. You both turned to face her at the same time. You hated the fact that you felt a wave of disappointment wash over you right now. He only wanted to kiss you to make this seem real; the fact that you were disappointed let you know that you were allowing yourself to get in too deeply. Your feelings right now couldn’t happen.

“There’s still dessert,” she announced as she made her way to the fridge.

“Yeah, we’re finished up here,” Rob replied as he removed his hands from the water. He dried himself off and moved toward his sister, not even looking at you as he did so. “I’ll help.”

You stood alone in the kitchen now as the two of them left with dessert. You were stunned. Mostly at the way that had went, but also because you realized that you had actually wanted him to kiss you. 

You shook your head and sighed as you drained the dishwater. You were getting in to deep with him. That had to stop if you wanted this to work out the way it was supposed to.


	12. Part 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rich is still 100% against this entire thing, which makes it difficult for Reader to work with him. Also, Rob really needs to rethink his choices if he wants to avoid looking like a jerk.

**Reader’s POV**

Three days after the dinner with Rob’s family, you headed back to set in Vancouver. It was a nice to be back and away from Rob for at least a little while. Things had been going pretty well, but that didn’t make the entire situation any less difficult for you.

After having berated yourself for the almost kiss and the knowledge that you may have wanted it to happen, you pulled back a bit when it came to your interactions with him. It was probably best to avoid him as much as you could, which was difficult to do since you were still staying at his place.

Mostly, the two of you didn’t see each other at home. You were both busy and usually missed each other throughout the day. When one of you was coming, the other was going and there wasn’t a lot of time for interaction. You were grateful for that at least. There had been at least one instance since that dinner when he asked you to go out with him. ‘Just dinner and drinks,’ he had said. It sounded harmless enough, and a decent idea to at least attempt to make yourselves look like a married couple publicly. But, you couldn’t do it. You tried to convince yourself that it was because you couldn’t stand to be around him.

As long as the two of you remained busy, maybe the next five or so months wouldn’t be so bad. As long as you didn’t see him often, maybe you could forget about the fact that your little crush had rekindled despite this mess. You didn’t want to admit to yourself that you might still sort of like him.

The worst thing you could do right now was think that there could be something still there between the two of you. This was no time to actually like your husband.

Back on set, things were not any easier. You were scheduled to work on a few episodes, one of which just happened to be directed by Rich. You knew that he was still up-in-arms about the whole things, and it was apparent by the way he avoided you as much as he could in the beginning. You wanted it to be easy to just ignore him, but you felt bad for the part you played, and you knew he was only looking out for his friend.

After shooting a particularly difficult scene one day, you looked to him for reassurance that you had done okay. He offered you no feedback, only cut the scene, called for a break, and moved on. A few days of him ignoring you was enough in your book, and you decided to call him out on his behavior. Mostly, you wanted to try to ease his mind a bit more. Unfortunately for you, the man was quick. He avoided you easily all day. 

* * *

During your break, you sat in your trailer alone. For some reason, you decided to check out your social media. You hadn’t posted or shared anything since you staged the picture after the wedding with the absolute lie of a caption attached to it. You had avoided it all since, afraid to even know what people were saying at this point.

You scrolled through your Twitter mentions, occasionally catching sight of some hurtful things being said, even if they were true. But it was the nice things that you focused on. For some reason, it made you feel better knowing that people supported you and Rob, despite how sudden and unexpected all of this was.

You were busy thinking that it was probably weird that those nice comments made you smile when Rob interrupted your thoughts by calling at that moment.

“Rob,” you said as you answered your phone.

“Hey, Y/N,” he replied. He sounded happy, and you could almost see him smiling based on the sound of his voice.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I was just calling because you never said when filming ends. I wasn’t sure when you’d be home.”

“That’s why you’re calling? Am I supposed to tell you my schedule?”

“Well, I guess you don’t have to,” he muttered. “I was just wondering.”

“Sorry. I’ll be back in L.A. on Tuesday.”

“Good, that will give us some time to hang out before next con.”

“Excuse me,” you replied. “Are you making plans?”

“No. Not really… I just thought we could do something. You know, maybe be seen in public.”

“For the sake of the marriage?”

“Yeah, for that.”

“We’ll see,” you answered as you ran your hand down your face. This entire thing was a lot to handle and the thought of spending alone time with Rob had you on edge. You really weren’t sure if it was a good idea to hang out with him just for fun, even if it helped this whole thing look better for both of you. Truthfully, you knew that you didn’t want to start actually liking the guy. You had already shared a few weird moments with him that made you feel things that you probably shouldn’t be feeling.

“Sure,” he mumbled. “I don’t mean to be pushy or whatever. I just thought…”

“No, it’s fine. We’ll do something I guess. It might be a good idea.” You cringed as you said it.

“Cool.”

“Is that the only reason you called?” You asked.

“Pretty much.”

You frowned, now wondering if he was keeping tabs on you. You may be married, but the idea that he was checking in on you to find out when you’d be back was a bit too much.

“You know you don’t have to work your schedule around mine,” you reminded him. “We’re still very much not a real couple. Please don’t turn into some annoying pseudo-boyfriend who keeps tabs on me.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do.”

“It’s fine. We’ll just- talk when I get back.”

* * *

It wasn’t until just before your next scene that you decided to give up on Rich, but he sought you out instead.

“Rich,” you mumbled as he stepped in front of you. You were sitting in your chair, reading lines, when you happened to glance up to see the man staring at you, arms crossed.

“Mrs. Benedict,” he replied flatly.

“No, I didn’t change my last name,” you corrected him. “Please call me Y/N.”

“Of course. No point in changing your maiden name when you’ll be divorced in a few months anyway.”

“Don’t you have an episode to direct?” You asked, now annoyed that he was still pissed off and still insistent on giving you a hard time. Why people continued to remind you of the mistake you had made, was beyond you.

“I would if I could get the talent to cooperate and show up on time.”

“I’m sorry,” you replied. You looked at him sheepishly, well aware of the fact that you had been late to set for the first time ever today. “Rob called and I didn’t realize how long we were on the phone.”

“Oh, so romantic,” he smirked. “I’m glad you kids are doing so well.”

“Rich,” you sighed in return. “Please stop being such an ass. I get that you’re pissed at us. I get that you think we’re making an even bigger mistake. I get that Rob’s your best friend and you’re worried about him. But he is an adult. I am an adult. Let us figure this out.”

“Adults?” He said as he pulled back in mock surprise. “I don’t know many adults who make stupid decisions like the two of you did. Even worse, I don’t know many adults who know that they made a mistake, but still choose to keep going down that rabbit hole instead of just ending it like they should.”

“Why are you being so mean to me?” You asked, irritated now. “You were nice when I met you, now you’re just being an ass.”

“Forgive me if I’m slightly annoyed that you and Rob are making a huge mistake and not listening to reason. Things like that sort of get under my skin.”

“We’re doing okay. Just so you know.”

“Well, that’s nice.”

You swear you saw him roll his eyes at the audacity of the comment.

“Can we not do this right now?”

“You met his family,” he stated.

“Y-yeah,” you replied, sort of surprised that he even knew about that. “I guess we never stopped to think about what all of this would mean for other parts of our life.”

“You were too focused on how you would look in the tabloids.”

You nodded in return. You understood completely that he was right. The two of you had been most concerned with your careers; you never considered anyone or anything else.

“God, that’s so messed up. That’s going to destroy them.”

“We were very convincing,” you pointed out. “They adore me.”

“Even worse,” he replied seriously.

“I know,” you admitted. “I’m well aware of the even bigger mess that we’re creating.”

“You know, he deserves better than all of this.”

“I know he does.”

“You probably do as well. You seem like a nice enough girl.”

“It was our mistake,” you replied. “We’re just trying to make it work the best we can.”

“He needed time to heal. He needed a fling to help him get over his ex-wife. He didn’t need a new wife.”

“I get it Rich,” you stated sharply. “Okay? I get it.”

“Do you though? Do either of you really get it?”

You took a deep breath, really not wanting this to turn into a fight with him of all people. Not only was he technically your boss at the moment, he was also Rob’s best friend. You understood that. You knew that Rich could make your life hell when he was on set if he really wanted to, and you wondered how long it would be before he could convince Rob of what a bad idea all of this was.

While Rob seemed pretty set in staying married, if there was one person who could convince him otherwise, it would be Rich. You needed to deflate the moment and choose your words wisely.

“Yes,” you replied. “We get it. We’ve talked about this so much that I am sick of talking about it. We realize what we’ve done by dragging unsuspecting families into this, and friends who don’t want to be involved. We understand how fucked up this is. But, you’re right. We’ve gone down that rabbit hole, and it’s too late to back out now. All we can do is keep going with it until we can end it without hurting anyone.”

“You said his family loved you,” Rich said. “Doesn’t matter at what point it ends, people are going to be hurt when it does.”

“I know.”

“There’s still no talking you out of this before it gets worse, is there?”

“Is that what you’re trying to do?”

“Maybe.”

You shook your head in response.

“You can try all you want, Rich. We’ve made our decision.”

He let out a drawn out sigh, darting his eyes from yours briefly before changing the subject.

“We’ve got a scene to shoot,” he sighed. “We’re already behind because of you, so just get to work and don’t fuck this up as well.”

You watched him as he turned his back to you and walked away. There was no pleasing anyone. Why Rich remained the one person so adamantly against this decision, you didn’t understand fully. At least the others didn’t give you such a hard time about it. What used to be concern and shame on your part when discussing this with Rich, had now turned into something else because of his constant need to butt in. Now, you just wanted to prove him wrong.

* * *

He left you alone for the rest of your time on set. He was back to barely acknowledging you. It hurt given the fact that you had gotten along with him and everyone else on that first day of Vegas con. You thought back to the way they had all welcomed you and helped you. Everyone seemed so eager to include you and get you through your first con in one piece.

They had liked you so much that they made a point of making sure that you were the one that their beloved Rob hooked up with. A feat in which they succeeded at least, but with consequences that no one wanted to own up to; besides you and Rob anyway.

Now, you were accidentally married to Rob and attempting to not make either of you look like jerks publicly. No one had to think that it was a good idea for the two of you to get married, even you knew that was a huge mistake. But, you tried to understand how they of all people couldn’t even support this decision for the two of you to avoid the inevitable backlash over your drunken mistake. They had gotten you and Rob that drunk in the first place, the least they could do was shut up when it came to the two of you trying to figure things out.

 

**Rob’s POV**

Y/N had returned to L.A. on Tuesday, just as promised. He wouldn’t admit it out loud, but he was actually happy to see her. He had spent some time working in the city, but things had been sort of lonely without her around his house.

He had laughed when she knocked on the front door, luggage in hand even though she had a key to the place. He had actually offered to pick her up from the airport, but she had nervously declined the help.

“You know, you kinda live here,” Rob reminded her as he helped her carry her bags inside. “You don’t have to knock.”

“Well, what if you had someone over? I would be humiliated if I interrupted anything.”

Rob stopped short, frowning as he considered this. Was that a thing that they should probably discuss? Was he allowed to see other people? Was she seeing other people? Obviously, this wasn’t a real marriage, unless you looked at it legally. He just never stopped to think that either of them were or should be treating it any differently from a real marriage.

“I would never have someone over,” he replied. “We’re married.”

She grinned at him, seemingly amused.

“Yeah, married on accident. I don’t know what you do when we’re not pretending and I don’t want to know.”

“Well, I’m certainly not planning on seeing anyone while we’re doing this. Are you?”

“What?” She asked, looking put off by the question. “No. I know that this isn’t really real, but can you imagine how shitty that would be if anyone found out we were seeing people outside of our fake marriage?”

“It would be worse than what it’s going to be like when we do divorce.”

“Exactly.”

* * *

Rob left Y/N to herself to get unpacked and relaxed now that she was back. Their short conversation concerning seeing other people left him feeling a bit better since he had been thinking about it the entire time she had been away. It’s not that he was worried that his wife was fucking around, he just didn’t want for anyone to find out about it if she was.

He was making himself comfortable on the couch, his big plan for the evening being watching a movie and relaxing when he thought about their phone conversation from a few days ago.

It wouldn’t be useful to their ploy, but he figured it wouldn’t hurt to hang out alone together regardless. If anything, spending time together might help them to come across as happy when they were in public together.

He padded down the hall and knocked on her door that was open just a bit. He waited until she gave him the go ahead to enter.

“Wanna chill on the couch and watch a movie?” He asked as he peeked inside, finding her sitting on the bed, phone in hand.

“Will there be popcorn?” She replied. Her lips turned up into an honest grin, making Rob smile in return.

“Of course.”

“Sure,” she replied as she stood up to join him.

They argued briefly over what to watch, until they finally agreed on the new Star Wars movie. She hadn’t seen it yet, and Rob never was one to turn down a Star Wars film even if he had seen it a few times before.

The conversation throughout the movie mostly consisted of generic questions back and forth as if they were trying to learn the basics about each other. It was an unmentioned idea really. They each knew that they should know things about each other in case someone chose to ask questions later, especially at cons. So, they volleyed back and forth, each of them storing away the basic details about the other.

Halfway through the movie, Y/N looked bored and Rob noticed as she began to play on her phone. He started to wonder if she really was a Star Wars fan at all.

He remained immersed in the film, almost forgetting that Y/N was sitting with him. That is, until she spoke up suddenly, looking a little irritated.

“What’s this?” She asked, holding the phone up to his face for him to see.

Started by the suddenness of having her phone shoved in his face, he pulled back before taking a moment to focus on the screen.

“Uh, that’s me.”

“Yeah. You and who else?”

“My friend?”

Rob was staring at a recent photo of himself with a female friend that had been taken during a night out. He mostly frowned at how the picture was not flattering in the least on his part; he was obviously drunk and simply kissing his friend on the cheek. Still, he didn’t understand why Y/N was sharing it with him.

“Rob, you can’t do things like this.”

He caught on to the frustration in her voice, something that really bothered him right now.

“What are you talking about?”

“We’re married,” she reminded him. “God knows I don’t want to be married to you, but we made a deal that we would make this look legitimate.”

“And…?”

“And you can’t go around hanging out with other women like this, especially not when you’re drinking. Do you even realize how bad this looks? Do you have any idea what people are saying about you? About me?”

“Relax, she’s my friend. I’m like this will all my friends.”

“You can’t be when we’re married. Not anymore. Also, why the hell are you out partying when we literally got married a few weeks ago?”

“Wait, are you like, trying to be the controlling wife here? You can’t tell me what to do.”

He definitely noticed that his tone had changed with her. What had started out as a nice night hanging out, had quickly turned into just another moment of the two of them being annoyed by each other. He wasn’t sure what her problem was, but the last thing he wanted was for her to tell him what to do.

“I’m not telling you what to do,” she replied defensively. “I’m just saying, if you want to keep the act up, then you need to be smarter about it.”

“Are you calling me stupid?”

“Maybe I am.”

“I am not stupid,” he huffed in return.

“Well you’re acting stupid. No one is going to buy that we are this happy, married couple if you’re out there hanging all over beautiful women when you’re out partying while your wife is out of town for work.”

“It’s not like I was making out with anyone.”

She rolled her eyes in response, “Maybe it would be easier if you did. Then I’d have a reason to divorce you sooner.”

“You know, I thought you’d be fun when I first met you. You’ve been tolerable the past couple of weeks actually. I didn’t realize you were going to be so high-strung though.”

“I am not high-strung,” she replied.

“Then quit being so controlling. You’re not my real wife.”

She stood up then. Almost angrily. Rob took note of the change in her presence. They had started this movie night laughing and talking. Rob was sure that the closeness that had been here between them might lead to something more. Now, she was pissed at him. Again. And it was over something stupid. Those pictures were nothing to be worried about, that’s how he was with all of his friends. Even more, it’s not like they were a real couple. Why did it even matter to her this much?

“I’m not trying to control you,” she replied softly. “I just- I thought we were both in this together. I don’t want to look like an asshole who’s new husband is out there acting like an asshole.”

“No one looks like an asshole. You’re overreacting.”

“Am I?” She tossed her phone into Rob’s lap and turned from him. As she walked away, Rob sat in confusion as to why she was letting him hold her phone. “Take a look at the responses,” she said as she disappeared down the hall.

Rob heard her close the bedroom door behind her and he shook his head in annoyance as he grabbed the phone and began to scroll through the comments.

“You’re overreacting!” He shouted out loud, hoping she had heard him.

There was no reply from her, so Rob grumpily began to read through the responses on the picture. His hope was that he could prove her wrong, but those hopes were crushed when he fell into the hole of reading the hundreds of mostly negative things being said about this particular harmless picture.

Perhaps she had been right. Normally, things like this didn’t cause people to talk. Now though, people seemed bothered by it. Most of the comments he didn’t expect. But, taking a moment to step back and look at it from the vantage point of people who had no idea what was going on between him and Y/N, it all made a lot of sense.

People were mostly confused as to why he was being so openly affectionate with someone that they didn’t recognize while his wife was in Vancouver. More importantly, why he was out partying like this while she was away. It was bad enough that he was so recently divorced, now he realized he was making himself look like a jerk when it came to his current wife.

In the moment, he hadn’t really considered any of this. He and Y/N were barely spotted together as it was; but fans pointed out how he had no problem with being spotted so close to someone unknown to them.

Rob hated to be wrong. He hated that Y/N of all people was right in this case. Surely he didn’t want to do anything to lead people to the assumption that there was something not quite right about their marriage, but he was doing just that without even realizing it.

He wondered if he had actually hurt her feelings in any way, or if it really was just about keeping up appearances on her part.

He exited the app and made his way slowly down the hall. He stopped at her door, taking a deep breath before knocking.

“Come in,” he heard her call from behind the door.

He opened the door and peeked in at her sitting on her bed. She looked up at him, almost as if she were waiting for an apology. He suddenly didn’t want to give her that, but he knew he had been an idiot.

“Look, I just wasn’t thinking,” he began. “I’ll be better.”

“You know, your ass isn’t the only one on the line here,” she said. “I’m the one that the fans are going to eat alive if they for one second begin to doubt what we’ve done.”

“I know that.”

“You have to be smarter about this. I get that you’re divorced and you have that whole ‘single guy’ thing going for you, but you’ve got to think about how things will look before you do them. This wasn’t supposed to happen, but it did. If you want for either of us to get out of this with our dignity intact, just listen to me.”

He nodded, pissed that she was right. He didn’t want a controlling wife, but she seemed to be a lot smarter than he was while navigating this mess.

“No more going out like that unless it’s with the band, or me. I know that totally sucks, and I normally wouldn’t stop someone I’m with from hanging out with friends; but this is a very delicate situation that we have to get through. It would be one thing if people looked at us as a legitimate husband and wife; but that’s not the case. No one really believes that this whole thing was done on purpose. They’re still saying that it’s suspicious. Let’s not add to that suspicion.”

“You’re right,” he said in return. “From now on, I will no longer have a social life.”

“You can have a social life,” she replied. “Just- you should probably have one with me.”

“Hey, I was trying to make that happen from the beginning.”

“I know. And that’s where I was wrong. We can’t go on not being around each other.”

“So…” he began, wondering if he should even say what he wanted to say. She was pissed off at him enough as it was, but he sort of liked the idea of pushing it a bit. “We were both wrong?”

She glared at him, standing up to approach him. She grabbed her phone from his hand forcefully, leaving him smirking at her. He just really wanted to hear her admit it.

“You were more wrong than I was,” she replied.

“But, we were both wrong about something, right?”

“Yes. I was wrong about insisting that we shouldn’t hang out. But you were wrong for basically cheating on me.”

“I did not cheat on you,” he nearly shouted. His face began to heat up, upset that she would even say it like that.

“No,” she confirmed. “But to the people who are dissecting our marriage and our lives right now, you kinda were.”

“Fine. I’m sorry for nearly cheating on you.”

“You’re forgiven,” she grinned. “Goodnight.”

She nearly pushed him out of her room and closed the door behind him. Rob stood in the hallway, trying to piece together what had just happened. He couldn’t be sure, but he thought that maybe they had just had another argument that she won in the end. He frowned as he realized it. If this is what it would always be like to be married to her, he wasn’t sure how long he could really last.

* * *


	13. Part 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is doing her part to play along now. She agrees to a night out with the group before another con weekend. No one expected the night to take such an unexpected turn though; and now Reader is faced with her real feelings for Rob. Regardless of how she truly feels, she’s got a habit of pretending otherwise.

**Reader’s POV**

In an attempt to do your part in the deal that you and Rob had going on, you opted to go ahead and fly with him to Montreal for the next con. You figured it was abound to look suspicious if you continued to fly separately, especially since you were going to the same place all the time.

He had done well for the rest of the week back home following your calling him out on the fact that he had to choose the company he kept wisely. It most certainly wasn’t a jealousy thing with you; after all, you weren’t a real couple, but you were well aware of how even the tiniest thing could cause things to go very badly for both of you. You didn’t want to be the overbearing, bossy wife; but you really didn’t want him to screw this up for you. In actuality, you didn’t care what he did with his life, but you were working hard to keep a spotless image for yourself. 

In all actuality, spending time with Rob wasn’t all that unpleasant. Maybe it was the fact that you were living with him for now, but the two of you were actually getting along well. There were still small spats between you, but mostly you were on the same page about most things. As you got to know him better, you sort of stopped hating him.

Your flight had been nice as you talked about how to handle the weekend coming up. Neither of you had been great about communicating in the past, but you felt that your time in L.A. together had helped with that. Now, you were able to actually map out the expectations and thoughts that you had about this situation while you would be spending yet another weekend in the fandom eye.

When you arrived in Montreal and made your way to the hotel; you didn’t even blink as Rob checked the two of you into your room. Normally, you’d be up in arms over having to share with him, but it seemed so normal at this point. You chuckled as you listened to him give the man at the front desk another fake alias; wondering why you found it hilarious this time as opposed to how offended you had been the last time.

You and Rob situated yourselves in the room and you couldn’t help but to notice the way things were no longer ridiculously awkward. You seemed to move in unison, reading each other as you claimed your spaces in the room. It was as if you had been doing this for so long, you just knew what the other was going to do.

This was far more relaxed than the last time, and you were grateful for that at least. You were pretty tired of the tenseness that had been there between the two of you, and while you still very much didn’t want to be married to him, you at least wanted for the remainder of the marriage to go smoothly.

“Drinks?” Rob asked as he stared at his phone.

“What?”

“Rich,” he began. “He sent me a text and said everyone’s going out to dinner and going for drinks after.”

“Rich is talking to you?”

“I guess so,” he shrugged. “Maybe he’s done being pissed at us.”

“I doubt it,” you chuckled. “But at least he’s making the effort to include us still.”

“What do you think?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

“I’ll just let him know that we’ll be there,” he said as he began to text Rich back.

* * *

After a surprisingly mellow dinner with everyone; the entire group headed to a bar that was highly recommended. The idea of drinking around these people again had you a bit nervous. You only had one real experience in partying with them; and experience that didn’t end well for anyone. You figured the worst thing that could ever happen in that case was already playing out, how much worse could it get? So, you allowed yourself to get caught up in the fun of actually being friendly with everyone again. You allowed yourself to enjoy a night out, even if you were thinking about the fact that you now had a husband who was there with you.

You wondered how you were expected to act tonight since you and Rob were in close proximity. Were you expected to hang all over him the way that any new wife would? Should you be focused on sticking by his side all night? Your worries about how to act right now were eased when Ruth and Kim stole you away and insisted that you join them at the bar.

“You don’t have to be with him all night,” Kim explained. “No one is going to think anything bad just because you step away from him now and then.”

“I just need this to look real. I need people to believe that we’re in love,” you replied as you stood with her and Ruth.

“I get that. But, based on the way that he’s looking at you from across the bar; anyone who sees that will think that he’s in love with you.”

You glance his way, catching him staring at you. You gave him a half-smile and he beamed back at you, causing your stomach to flip in response. Why were you feeling like this just because he was looking at you?

**Rob’s POV**

He wondered how much was too much at this point. He knew that he needed to at least make it look like he was in love with her, and he assumed she was still insistent on that as well. But, he realized that he didn’t quite know what the boundaries were here. Did he just sit back and watch her adoringly? Was he supposed to be touchy feely with her, sneaking in to steal kisses like any normal newlywed couple would behave? He made a mental note to make sure they discussed this later.

He chose to stay seated and just glance over at her occasionally. It could still be believable this way, he didn’t have to be hanging all over her all night. As long as people saw them interact here and there and he made it look as if she was stealing his attention throughout the night, it could be believable.

He was in the middle of vaguely listening to Rich and Briana as they talked about something. He wasn’t even sure anymore. He was still sort of nervous over how he should be acting with Y/N at this point. He nodded as Rich directed a question at him, not even hearing what was said. He kept his eyes on Y/N who was now chatting with Ruth and Kim at the bar. If nothing else, she at least seemed happy as she talked excitedly with them; laughing and smiling enough to lead everyone in this bar to think that she really was happy.

“Earth to Rob,” Rich said, waving a hand in front of Rob’s face and breaking him from his trance on Y/N.

“Oh, hey,” Rob muttered. “What’s up?”

“I said, how are the two of you holding up?”

“Me and Y/N?”

“Yeah, you and Y/N.”

“We’re okay actually.” Rob focused on Rich and Briana now. “Actually, this whole living together thing has helped a lot I think.”

“Really?” Briana asked. “We all thought that was going to be a terrible idea.”

“Not at all. I mean, we’ve been hanging out a lot, actually getting to know each other. I think it’s really helping us get along better.”

“Well, that’s sweet,” Rich chimed in, taking a drink from his beer.

“Dude, can you not?”

“What? I said it was sweet.”

“Yeah,” Rob rolled his eyes. “And it didn’t sound sarcastic at all.”

“Look, I’m trying here,” Rich replied. “Y/N said some stuff to me on set, and I know that I’ve been hard on both of you. I still think you’re idiots and I still hate this entire thing, but I’ll try to be nicer.”

“Really? I can’t say I was expecting this.”

“Also, Briana told me she’d kick my ass if I wasn’t nice to the two of you this weekend.”

Rob grinned at Briana, who only gave him a knowing smile as if to say that Rich wasn’t lying. It wasn’t the way that Rob wanted Rich to learn to accept this choice, but if it worked, he wasn’t arguing.

In the middle of their conversation; something that Rob had missed a lot with his friends since this whole thing had happened, something at the bar caught Rich’s attention.

“Looks like someone else is moving in on your wife,” Rich chuckled as he nodded in the direction of the bar.

Rob turned to see what he meant. There at the bar, a man had approached Y/N, Kim, and Ruth; but he was obviously keeping his seemingly unwanted attention on Y/N. Rob immediately grew anxious. He thought he recognized the man as just a random person who had offered to buy Y/N a drink when they first arrived at the bar. She had declined politely and the guy had backed off. Now, he was back and too close for comfort, despite the fact that Y/N had made it clear that she wasn’t interested.

Again, Rob was plagued with questions. Should he step in now and get rid of the guy? Could Y/N handle it on her own, or more importantly, would she rather handle it on her own?

He watched as the man stepped in closer to Y/N. Her earlier happy expression had faded quickly and Rob felt himself grow uncomfortable by how uncomfortable she appeared to be now.

“At what point does a fake husband step in to get rid of a creep?” Rob asked out loud, directing his thought to Rich and Briana.

He kept his eyes on the scene, and felt his heart drop when he saw the man reach and arm around Y/N, moving his hand down the small of her back until he stopped and grabbed her ass. That was all he saw. Well, that and the look of complete shock on Y/N’s face.

“I think that’s the point,” Rich responded as he too watched the entire thing happen.

Rob was already out of his seat and approaching Y/N though. He could feel his face heat up in anger and the adrenaline began to rush through him. The guy was obviously bigger than he was, and he was sure that interfering was going to lead to him getting pummeled. It didn’t matter though. He was seeing red and his immediate instinct was to protect her.

He walked quickly toward Y/N, watching as she attempted to shove the guy away. She was upset now and Kim and Ruth were shouting something at the man that Rob couldn’t quite hear. He wasn’t taking no for an answer though; so Rob moved a little faster, now feeling like he had to protect them all.

Rob placed himself in between Y/N and the man, shoving him back a bit which at least led to the guy losing his grip on her. ‘Yeah, this guy’s a lot bigger than I thought,’ he thought to himself as he forced himself to face the guy.

“Can I help you?” The man asked, looking down at Rob with an annoyed look.

“Yeah, you can help everyone by backing the fuck off.”

“This has nothing to do with you.”

“Actually, it does. She’s my wife.”

“What?” The man grinned and pointed to Y/N. “This pretty girl right here is married to you?”

“Yes,” Y/N replied.

“I suggest you just back off now before I get really pissed,” Rob added.

“What do you think you’re gonna do?” The man asked with a challenging smirk. He took a step closer to Rob.

He stopped briefly to consider this. He really didn’t know what he was doing. He had hoped that he could keep his cool long enough to get out of this by simply talking to the guy. Apparently that wasn’t working. He was still overcome with the want to hit the guy; something that he knew would not go well for him. He sized the man up again and let out the breath he had been holding in. Yeah, he was definitely going to get his ass kicked tonight. It may have been simpler to just take Y/N and get the hell out of there, but something in him wanted to prove a point. It wasn’t okay to grab women, and it wasn’t okay to be so persistent when a woman was obviously not interested.

Rob steeled himself, knowing that he was about to make a big mistake. The only thing he hoped to gain from it was getting this guy to back off finally.

“Well,” Rob began as he stepped back a bit from the guy and readied himself. “I guess I’m going to have to do this…”

**Reader’s POV**

You would have thought it was really sweet that Rob had stepped in and was defending you in any other case. Right now though, that thought seemed to fade when you realized he was basically picking a fight with this guy who was much bigger than he was.

The moment that you noticed Rob step back when the man challenged him with the words, ‘What do you think you’re gonna do?’, you knew that shit was about to get real bad, real fast.

However, you didn’t have time to react or even try to convince Rob to just step down. You could have easily dragged him out of there; avoiding the creep and what was about to happen altogether.

Before you could think, Rob had pulled back and hit the guy; which only startled him briefly. The next few minutes were a dizzying blur as you were inexplicably pulled away from the fight that was quickly unfolding in front of you. You wanted to go to Rob out of instinct. You very suddenly hated yourself for this even happening right now.

“Stop, Y/N,” you heard Kim shout. You looked at her, now realizing that she was the one getting you away from the mess. You let her drag you away as the sudden feeling of guilt washed over you. The only relief that you felt came from when you saw some of your other friends rushing into the chaos.

You decided that it was best to stay away from it. You knew that no one was going to let Rob get his ass kicked, and you only hoped that whatever damage was caused in those first few seconds of him reacting like an idiot was minimal.

Almost as soon as the whole thing started, it was over. You breathed a sigh of relief when you saw Jason practically drag Rob away from the fight. You had missed what had happened; mostly because your view was skewed by the bodies that jumped in to stop it, but also because you really didn’t want to look. Now, you made your way to Jason and Rob, ready to yell at him for being such an idiot.

“So, we’re leaving,” Jason announced as the two of them approached you. You quickly glanced at Rob; relieved that the damage seemed to be minimal at least. He was certainly beat up a bit, but it didn’t look to be too concerning.

The entire group left before anything else could happen. Mostly, you were forced to when Rob was kicked out. No one else had to leave, but the fight had certainly put a damper on the night. You walked next to Rob as the group headed back to the hotel.

Neither of you said a word to each other. You looked toward him every now and then, trying to read his thoughts over what had just happened. He mostly looked emotionless. You on the other hand, were surprisingly worried.

* * *

Once you were in the privacy of your own room, you decided to make the effort to let Rob know that he was an idiot, but you still appreciated him.

You insisted that he lie down on the bed and you quickly grabbed the ice bucket, leaving the room briefly to retrieve ice to nurse his wounds. You prepped a makeshift ice pack once you got back and joined him on the bed, sitting next to him.

“You didn’t have to do that,” you said softly as you placed the towel just below his eye that was already starting to bruise. He flinched slightly and then relaxed.

“I know I didn’t,” he replied.

“I’m sorry,” you said.

“Why are you sorry? You’re not the creep who was going around grabbing people.”

“No, but I know you stepped in to defend your ‘wife’. This never would have happened otherwise.”

“You don’t think I would have stepped in even if we weren’t married?”

You dropped your eyes from his, now feeling ashamed as you pretended to be more concerned with his injuries.

“Because I would have done that regardless.”

“You would do that for any woman, wouldn’t you?”

“Well, I considered just grabbing you and getting you out of there; which is probably what I actually would have done if it had been any other woman I know,” he chuckled. “It’s usually best to avoid the fights or at least leave them for someone who is actually big enough to measure up. But, for you, I would have reacted the same way even if we weren’t married.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I saw him grab you and I just lost it.”

“Normally, I’d yell at you and tell you that you were an idiot,” you began.

“You’d tell me that you had it under control?”

“Yeah, I would normally say that.”

“I felt like you didn’t though. Which is why I reacted.”

“I mean, I probably would have gotten it under control after the shock wore off.”

“You seem like you can handle yourself pretty well.”

“Still, I appreciate you stepping in,” you said quietly before you gave him a smirk. “Even if you nearly got your ass kicked.”

“Hey, Jason said that I actually got the guy pretty good,” he smiled.

You smiled in return, moving the towel to his split lip that had stopped bleeding.

“I’m so proud,” you laughed.

You both kept quiet for a moment as you focused on taking care of him. You were nervous now over the way his eyes stayed on you tried to gently ice his lip. This was all your fault, and you wanted to do what you could to ease whatever pain he was in. The way he watched you though made you very aware of the fact that this was the first time the two of you had been this close. The night of the wedding didn’t count in your book. Honestly, this moment right here felt even more intimate than that.

“Thank you,” he whispered suddenly.

“For what?”

“For taking care of me right now.”

“It’s the least I could do. I’ve never had a man stand up for me like that,” you responded.

The two of you fell into silence again. It wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable this time. Now, you were just back to taking care of him while he watched you from his place on the bed. The only strangeness from the situation came from the feeling you got as you thought about the way he was watching you. It was almost as if this were a tender and sweet moment between the two of you.

When you figured his face was numb enough as the ice melted in the makeshift ice pack, you set the towel aside and moved onto the bed next to him. He scooted over slightly as you laid your body next to his; not too close but also not wanting to push him at arm’s length this time. It wasn’t the first time you had shared a bed with him, but something about this moment made it an entirely new experience. You faced him, lying on your side to look at him as he moved to face you in turn.

Still, neither of you spoke; but you both seemed to be in the same mindset in the moment. You hesitantly placed a hand against his chest, watching for some sort of reaction as you considered if this was okay with him.. His reaction wasn’t what you expected, since you assumed that he hated you after everything, but he closed his eyes as his lips turned up into a soft smile. You felt him breathe out and you took it as your cue to move closer.

You only paused when your face was just inches from his. You waited for something, not quite sure what that something was right now. Maybe you just wanted an excuse to not do what you were thinking of doing.

“I think I’m waiting for someone to interrupt us,” you said.

“Yeah,” he smiled. “We’ve been interrupted a few times, huh?”

You nodded in return and he glanced up at you, those blue eyes studying you.

“I don’t think anyone is going to interrupt us right now,” he continued. “But you also don’t have to kiss me if you don’t want to.”

“What about the act?” You asked. “Aren’t we supposed to be a believable couple?”

“We’re the only one’s here, Y/N.”

You moved closer to him anyway, running your hand up his chest and around to the back of his neck. You pulled him toward you and placed your lips against his softly.

Surprisingly, you were the one to tense up. He only flinched slightly at the way your lips pressed against his injury, but he quickly eased into it. He seemed more natural about the whole thing as he waited for you to take the lead.

You were overwhelmed that this was even happening. No one was around to witness this, no one would be talking about how they had seen the two of you kiss, so therefore; the entire relationship was real. You could lie to yourself all you wanted; but you knew that this was for you. These past few weeks of craziness over your mistake and the subsequent time spent telling yourself that you were completely over the fact that you may have had a thing for him; was beginning to wash away rather quickly. There were a lot of things that you had been trying to force yourself into believing; maybe right now, it was okay to just let your guard down with him.

The knowledge that you could still use the fact that you were married to write things like this off as an act, was the only thing that eased your mind. Maybe it wasn’t right or fair to anyone, but at least you had that option if you realized that this was a mistake.

Now that you had eased into the moment, you pressed your lips to his a bit harder. You felt sort of bad that this was possibly hurting him given the split lip and all, but he wasn’t giving you any indication that he wanted you to stop. He moved his hand to your waist, gripping onto you as you parted your lips for him.

This was not about looking legitimate in front of anyone anymore. You sort of panicked as you realized that you were kissing him for no other reason than maybe you wanted to kiss him. You kept your eyes closed and lost yourself in the way his lips felt against yours, the way he tasted your mouth as if you were all he ever wanted.

You pushed aside the nagging thought that this was a bad idea. The worst thing either of you could do was start to like each other when this entire thing was scheduled to end in roughly five months anyway.

You closed your eyes tightly as you tried to focus on the kiss. It felt nice to be with him like this. The doubts in your mind, the reminders that none of this was real, the knowledge that the two of you had involved so many people in this mess who would ultimately be hurt in the end; it was too much for you to think about anymore.

For the time being, you figured it didn’t hurt to just ignore all of that for now. Maybe it was okay to let yourself go now and then and take advantage of the fact that you had a ‘husband’ at your disposal.


	14. Part 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After that kiss, Reader and Rob are equally confused. Each is feeling something for the other; but neither of them will admit it. When they get caught up in a heat of the moment situation, they begin to push each other away even more.

**Reader’s POV**

You were startled when you woke up the next morning wrapped in Rob’s arms. He slept peacefully next to you and you went into a panic while you assessed the situation. The only relief you felt was knowing that nothing had happened.

There had been some drinking last night, but the fight that Rob started had sobered both of you up rather quickly. You remembered coming back to the room to nurse his wounds, and you recalled the fact that you had kissed him, but that was all that had happened. A repeat of Vegas would have been the last thing you wanted, and even now, you regretted that kiss.

You carefully moved from his embrace on you, trying not to wake him. When you were free, you got up and decided to at least get ready for the day. Waking up like this was slightly embarrassing and you couldn’t even consider going back to sleep.

You moved about the room quietly, glancing over to him just to make sure that he was still asleep. You felt your face heat up as that kiss replayed in your head. It had been just a reaction. You wanted to know what it was like to kiss him, and you just went for it. He had let you, and now you wondered why.

* * *

When he finally woke up later, you were sitting across the room on the couch, fixing your makeup. You watched him as he glanced around until his eyes found you. He smiled sweetly at you.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hi,” you replied.

“You’re up early.”

“Yeah, I couldn’t go back to sleep so I figured I’d get a head start and get ready.”

He pushed himself out of bed and yawned before heading toward you. He stopped in front of you and leaned down, causing your heart to stop as he inched his face closer to yours. Of course. You had kissed him and now he expected for that to be a regular thing for some reason.

You tilted your head down, staring at your lap and you noticed him pause. You assumed he didn’t expect this reaction, but he placed a soft kiss to the top of your head anyway.

You only glanced up as he moved away from you. You watched him head to the bathroom and close the door behind him, and you finally let out the breath that you had been holding in.

* * *

The two of you got ready and headed out the door to head to the convention, all without a single word being spoken to each other. The feeling between you was tense again and you knew it was because you had crossed boundaries last night.

“Hey, should we talk about last night?” He asked as the two of you walked down the hallway.

“You wanna talk about how you nearly got your ass kicked at the bar?”

“I’d rather avoid that topic,” he smiled. “I was wondering if we should talk about you kissing me.”

You felt your face heat up as he brought it up. A part of you had hoped he’d just pretend it never happened, or at least not feel the need to talk about it.

“What about it?” You asked flatly.

“Um, I don’t know,” he mumbled. “I guess I was wondering what that was all about. It was nice.”

“Don’t read too much into it,” you warned. “I was just- practicing.”

“Practicing?”

“You know, I figured there might come a time when we might have to act affectionate in public. I was just testing it out.”

“Oh,” he replied. “I get it. It didn’t mean anything, you were just acting.”

“Exactly,” you said as you glanced over at him. “Weren’t you?”

He paused for a moment as he thought. You both stopped at the elevators and he pressed the button and you waited.

“Yeah,” he replied. “Totally. It was just- a rehearsal. In case we have to kiss in front of other people.”

“Smart right? That way we don’t appear awkward just because we’re fake married.”

“Are you planning on kissing me in public?”

“Well, I mean… we haven’t actually been very affectionate in public. I’ve been reading all about us. People are concerned for a lot of reasons, that’s one of them.”

“We’re not affectionate enough?”

“Not for a couple who’s only been married for a few weeks.”

“Okay,” he said as you stepped onto the elevator with him. He reached out and grabbed your hand, holding it in his as he smiled at you. “Let’s start being affectionate then.”

* * *

**Rob’s POV**

In truth, he was sort of hurt by the fact that Y/N had simply used him. Yes, he had enjoyed that kiss far more than he wanted to, but he had hoped that maybe she had as well. Obviously he had been wrong. It was nothing more than a moment for her to test the waters so that, if the time ever came for the two of them to have to act in public, she could make it look real.

He knew it was a stupid idea to go into that kiss thinking that maybe she would also get that feeling that there was something more there between them. He was left feeling even more stupid by the fact that he was the only one having these feelings.

“We’re up,” Rich announced, breaking Rob from his thoughts.

He had been sitting in the green room, running things through his mind all morning. In between introductions and songs, it was almost as if he weren’t really present. Y/N had him a mess and this was a new thing for him.

“Yeah, coming,” he replied as he followed Rich and the band out of the room. He noticed Matt close behind and he had nearly forgotten that they had their panel today.

“How are ya?” Matt asked as he caught up and placed a hand on Rob’s shoulder.

“What? Good. I’m good. Why?”

“Well, you seem pretty out of it today,” Matt laughed. “You’re not the same Rob.”

“Sorry. I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”

“What’s going on?” Matt asked as they continued to walk together toward the main room.

“Can I tell you something and you promise not to say anything to anyone?”

“You can trust me.”

“Y/N kissed me last night.”

“Okay, I’ve seen you kiss before.”

“No, not like this. All those other times were never even on the lips.”

“I heard you two made out in Vegas,” he replied. “Which then led to you getting married for some reason.”

“No. Not a drunk kiss either.” Rob stopped in his tracks, grabbing Matt by the arm to stop him too. They watched as the other guys kept walking and when they were at a safe distance, Rob turned back to Matt. “She kissed me. Like, for real kissed me.”

“Did she use tongue?” He smirked.

Rob scowled at his friend, shaking his head before answering. “Yes, but that’s not the point. It felt like.. a real kiss between people who actually like each other.”

“What, you don’t like each other?”

“Matt, I accidentally married her. I’m not exactly her most favorite person in the world.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask how that’s been going.”

“Not great,” he admitted. They started to walk again now that the rest of the guys were out of view. “We argue a lot. She likes to be right all the time and she mostly yells at me. Living together has helped, but it’s far from great. We sort of can’t stand each other.”

“Yet, you hit that guy because he was groping her.”

“Well, that was out of line.”

“Would you have done that for anyone else?”

“I would hope that someone like you would get involved first,” Rob said, quirking an eyebrow at Matt. “I’m so not a fighter.”

“But, for her you were.”

“Look, I think I like her,” he began. “I mean, obviously I like her. We wouldn’t be in this position if I didn’t. But, I think I’m really falling for her. Which sucks because she really hates me.”

“She kissed you though?”

“Yeah. We got back to the room and she iced my face,” he recalled. “Then she just kissed me.”

“Maybe she just felt bad for you.”

“It was a long kiss,” Rob pointed out. “And there was tongue.”

“Maybe she’s into you too then.”

“This morning she said she was practicing when I asked her about it.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “She said we’d have to kiss in public at some point. She just wanted to see what it would be like.”

“This is really weird,” Matt responded.

“Tell me about it.”

“Look, maybe she likes you, maybe she doesn’t. Don’t read too much into it though. The two of you are in a weird place and you made it even more weird by deciding to stay married. Maybe she really was just practicing.”

“I was hoping you’d give me a pep talk,” Rob admitted. “You know… ‘Hey Robbie, she wants you. Go for it.’”

“Yeah, I can’t do that man. But I can tell you to just wait it out and see if it turns into more. Who knows,” Matt chuckled suddenly. “Maybe the two of you will realize you’ve been in love this entire time and just stay married.”

Rob frowned as Matt patted him on the back roughly before jogging off to catch up with the others.

“That’s ridiculous!” Rob shouted after him.

* * *

The panel with Matt and Rich was the usual. They sifted through hypothetical questions about their characters, went through the usual questions about Kings of Con, and they each made really bad jokes that still earned them laughs from the audience.

This time though, there were a few questions snuck in with fans asking a lot about their wives and families. Rob listened to the other two talk before he even bothered to add in his two cents. He didn’t know how to answer most of these questions because he was just not good at lying. He was honestly surprised that he and Y/N were even pulling this entire thing off as well as they were.

Still, he knew what people were saying about them and their marriage. He only hoped that he was taking the right cues from Rich and Matt when it was his turn to answer.

By the end of their panel, he was relieved. He didn’t want to answer more questions about this lie, and that’s when he realized that it was already starting to weigh on him. He could tell himself that it was an act all he wanted, but he knew how he felt about her. He also knew that those feelings were not ever going to be reciprocated.

He moved to his place with the band and began to sing through the song. When they finished, Rich went straight in to introducing Y/N next. Rob sighed, hoping it wasn’t noticeable to anyone else, but he was seriously so done with today and with Y/N. He just wanted it to be over so that he could retreat to his room and have time to think some more.

Y/N made her way on stage and immediately approached Rob with a smile on her face. While he should have been upset with her and the way she had basically said that she had been using him, he couldn’t help but smile in return. He expected a quick hug and kiss on the cheek,, especially since they were in the company of fans and the guys on stage. However, she threw her arms around his shoulders and pulled him down so that she could kiss him on the lips.

He froze out of surprise, but melted into the softness of her lips and the way her tongue traced against his. He could be wrong, but that was probably unnecessary. Although he was feeling all sorts of emotions over the lie and what she had said that morning and the way she was kissing him, he chose to kiss her back. He pressed himself harder against her mouth, testing her slightly by nipping at her bottom lip.

She let out a low moan against his mouth and pulled back suddenly. He took note of the red forming on her cheeks and the way she touched her lips with her fingertips as she stared up at him in shock.

He couldn’t help but grin at her. He had taken her by surprise, and he felt that she sort of enjoyed it.

The crowd cheered for her, or rather for them and that over the top display of affection. Rob blushed as he nodded to the audience and walked away, leaving Y/N to her panel. She hadn’t been kidding about the whole ‘being affectionate in public’ thing. 

* * *

At the end of the day, Rob decided to call it a night. He said goodnight to everyone as they made plans to go out and headed for the exit. To his surprise, Y/N followed close behind.

“Do you mind if I join you?” She asked.

“Uh, sure,” he replied. “We are in the same room after all.”

“Yeah. I just didn’t feel like going out.”

“Me neither.”

They walked together in more awkward silence. Rob had so many things that he wanted to say, so many questions that he wanted answered; but he also felt that he wouldn’t get the answers he wanted from her.

He leaned against the side of the elevator, watching her as she leaned against the opposite side. He felt like he should bring up that kiss as well, as he was confused by it even more than the first one.

Instead, he made the ballsy choice to go with his other thought. He pushed himself off the wall and stepped toward her as the doors closed and the elevator began to move. She looked up at him, eyes almost hopeful as he approached her. Rob didn’t want to talk about it anymore. Now, he just wanted to kiss her again to see if this was something else. Knowing that he was short on time for the elevator ride, he didn’t even hesitate. He leaned in and kissed her; which seemed to catch her by surprise at first. But, she went with it, much to his amusement.

Before he could think anymore, this kiss had turned into a make out session. He had her pinned against the wall, both of their hands roaming as they kissed heatedly. He decided it was best to just go with it and not try to ask questions this time.

He ran a hand down her thigh, causing her to buck against him. Out of instinct, he gripped her leg and lifted it to his hip so that he could grind against her.

She moaned into his mouth, breaking away so that she could catch her breath. He didn’t let her though. He moved his hips again and she threw her head back and moaned even louder.

He half expected her to shove him away, but she only gripped her hands into his shirt to pull him closer.

“We can’t fuck in an elevator,” she breathed out.

Just the idea that she was thinking about fucking made him want her more. He crashed his lips against hers again just as he heard the ‘ding’ of the elevator arriving to their floor. The doors opened slowly and that was when she pushed him away. She straightened her clothing and attempted to look presentable as she stepped off and hurried toward the room. Rob just followed, wondering if he had screwed up and was about to hear her tear into him once they had real privacy.

**Reader’s POV**

“What was that?” You asked as you closed the door behind you. You were still breathless by the impromptu make out session in the elevator. None of this was supposed to be happening this way, and the kissing was meant for the public only.

“I think we just made out,” he grinned.

“Yeah, but why?”

He shrugged in return, obviously not able to answer the question.

“Why are we making out when there’s not even anyone around to see it?” You asked again.

“Practice?”

Without thinking, you stepped closer to him. You brought your hands up to his face to lead him down to you. You crashed your lips against his, this time as if you needed him like the air you breathed.

It was frantic and almost passionate, not what you expected from yourself at all. He darted his tongue into your mouth and just the taste of him had you moaning again. This time, neither of you pulled back in surprise of your reaction. You pressed your body against his harder and he gripped onto you before letting his hands wander up your shirt as his hands caresses the bare skin of your back.

You shuddered against him and could already feel the heat pooling within you. Why you wanted him so badly right now, you weren’t sure.

He moved his focus from your mouth and began to kiss down to your neck. You dropped your head back, mouth agape, as you gasped each time he sucked and nipped at the skin there.

You knew you should stop this, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do so. Instead, you tried to reason with yourself as to why this might not be a bad idea. Your head was swimming with thoughts; was it okay to be with him like this? Was this going to complicate things further? On and on your thoughts went, but all you could focus on was how good this felt.

You ran your hands up against his chest, gripping at his shirt as he found a sensitive spot on your collarbone with his teeth. You breathed in sharply and pushed him away from you.

He pulled back, staring at you with curious eyes as he waited to see what you would do. This would be a good time to end this. But, you instinctively pulled your shirt off instead, watching him as he stared at you with wide eyes. Maybe it was all just heat of the moment, but the way that he looked at you right now made you want him even more.

Once you had discarded your shirt, you reached out and unbuttoned his quickly before tossing it aside as well. This time, he pulled you back to him and began to kiss you again. The sensation of his warm, naked skin against yours turned you on even more. You gasped and sighed against his lips as you began to work at his belt and jeans.

“You sure you want to do this?” He asked as he broke away from you briefly.

“What?” You breathed out. “You don’t want this?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Then what are we discussing?”

“Should we discuss the fact that we’re here right now, about to do this when we’re fake married and just trying to make people believe that we’re this happily married couple?”

“We’re actually really married,” you explained as you reached around to unhook your bra. You threw it aside and smiled at the audible gasp Rob gave as he watched you.

“I know,” he replied. “But, I just- don’t want to take advantage of… whatever this is.”

“Remember when I told you that you were a good husband?”

“Yeah.”

“I meant it,” you said as you pressed against him again. “We never did consummate things.”

“Well, I think we did, we just don’t fully remember it.”

“Are you trying to talk me out of this?” You asked as you pulled away from him. “Or are you trying to talk yourself out of it?”

Suddenly, your arousal was fading. You thought you were both on the same page here, but his questions and concerns over what was happening led you to believe otherwise.

“I just- I don’t understand what this is.”

“What don’t you understand about it?”

“I don’t understand why we’re doing this.”

He took his focus away from your naked chest, looking you directly in the eyes now. You were overcome with a sense of humiliation. Of course you were pushing too far with this. The two of you had agreed to stay in this marriage and at least try to get along for the sake of making it look as if it weren’t an accident. Now, you didn’t know what the hell you were thinking or doing. You also didn’t understand what he was trying to do here. He had been the one to make the move in the elevator. He had kissed you, practically fucked you right there; now he didn’t want you?

You broke away from his stare and reached down to grab your discarded clothing from the floor. You redressed quickly, still trying to hold back with letting it be known how embarrassed you were. It really had been a heat of the moment thing. He didn’t want this. He wanted to just get through this marriage, the same way that you did.

“I’m sorry,” he began, but you cut him off, talking fast as you tried to just pretend it never happened.

“It’s fine. You’re right. We shouldn’t be doing this at all. This was stupid.”

“I didn’t say that it was stupid, I was just confused.”

“Me too,” you admitted. “I mean, we barely like each other after everything that happened in Vegas. We’re in a fucked up situation and we shouldn’t be considering making it worse.”

He watched you quietly, neither of you even knowing what to say anymore. You had very quickly complicated things beyond belief, and you didn’t know if you could even look at him anymore.

“Obviously we just got caught up,” you explained. “We’re both frustrated and I think we’re just taking that frustration out on each other.”

“Well, I guess at least we’re not yelling at each other,” he chuckled.

“Still, this shouldn’t have gone this far.”

“Okay, we’ll just slow down. No more kissing like that, unless it’s in public.”

“I’m not sure if that’s even a good idea anymore,” you admitted.

“What about what you said about looking like we’re in love?”

“That was stupid too. We’ll just get through this marriage until our time is up. If people don’t believe it, then fine. We need to stop.”

He stared down at the floor, looking hurt as you spoke. Truthfully, you didn’t get him at all. You had thought for sure that he wanted you. The way he kissed you and the way he looked at you as you undressed each other, you could swear that maybe he still felt an attraction to you. You thought that maybe he actually liked you, and not like he did on the day when you first met him. In the aftermath of Vegas and the fact that your friends had set the two of you up to simply hook up for one night, you understood that it was supposed to be a one time thing. He may have been attracted to you then, but it was never supposed to go as far as it did. Now, he was just trapped in this marriage just as much as you were.

The only difference was that you could feel yourself growing attached to him. You had never felt the way you did when you kissed him. You went into this situation at this moment actually wanting him. Now, you were just the idiot who was reading too much into this whole thing.

“I’m going to bed,” you announced. “I’m sorry again.”

“Sh-should I just take the couch?”

“What? No, I won’t let you do that.”

“This won’t be awkward now?”

“It’s not for me,” you lied. “Look, we can just pretend it didn’t happen. I think that we’ve done enough stupid things that this pales in comparison.”

He let out a light chuckle, nodding in agreement.

“You’re not wrong.”

**Rob’s POV**

Like most nights, Rob didn’t sleep well that night. This time was worse. He tossed and turned, trying not to wake her as she slept next to him far on her side of the bed. He had been an idiot. Why he had even said anything at all when he was so close to being with her like that, he didn’t understand.

The entire thing had to be confusing for both of them, but he was the one who had quickly killed the mood.

He glanced over at her in the dark, watching her body rise and fall with each breath she took. She seemed unaffected by the whole thing. Meanwhile, Rob had so many thoughts running through his mind, he couldn’t shut it off.

The whole point of even saying anything probably had a lot to do with the fact that he felt as if he was doing exactly what Rich had warned him not to do. He was falling hard for her.

The way that she had kissed him last night had led him to believe that maybe she felt something too. It had been gentle at first, and then urgent. Even when she said it was done simply so that she could get used to the fact that she may have to kiss him in public, nothing led him to believe that she wasn’t into it. Then there was that unexpected kiss on stage. He knew it was meant to show people that they were in love with each other, but it had felt so real to him.

The way they heatedly made out on the elevator felt like he was right. She liked him and he liked her. Why wouldn’t they replay that night in Vegas, only with a lot less alcohol in their systems?

Seeing her take her clothing off for him as she held eye contact, the feeling of her hands brushing against his skin as she removed his shirt… it had all been so perfect. The only reason that he felt any hesitation was because, for him, the entire moment had been something that he wanted. He adored her, despite their obvious mess and the fact that she had a way of irritating him. Sleeping with her would have meant something to him. He just wanted to make sure it meant something to her as well.

It was probably for the best that he found out that it meant nothing to her before it actually happened. How could it? She obviously didn’t like him. Vegas had been a drunken mistake on her part for sure, and there was no denying that she was consistently trying to avoid him. She wanted out of this marriage and away from him.

At least she had been smart enough to stop it from going too far.

Rob let out a long sigh. The ache in his chest was still present. He really wished he hadn’t said anything earlier. At least he could have had a chance in being with her when they would both remember it. At the same time, he knew that it would have just made his feelings for her grow even more. He would be caught in an unrequited romance with his own wife, and that wouldn’t be good for anyone.

* * *


	15. Part 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob’s denial of Reader causes more problems in the relationship. Seeing that his friends are trying, but failing at getting along, Rich gives Rob a suggestion on how to fix some things. Reader is not thrilled at the idea of seeing a therapist, but she figures she can have a little fun with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve never been to a relationship therapist or whatever. This might not be accurate.

**Rob’s POV**

The following day, Y/N was right back to her usual horrible self. They had been doing well lately, he didn’t ever consider that some kissing and almost sex could mess that up.

She was already ignoring him and only talking to him when she felt the need to nag at him. For the first time since Vegas, he was starting to feel like they really were married.

“Trouble in paradise?” Rich asked as he smirked over at Rob. He was relaxing for a brief moment in between panels in the green room, trying to figure out where he had went so wrong today.

“It’s not funny, Rich,” he sighed. “We were doing so well, and today she’s just been horrible.”

“You should go to couples counseling,” Rich joked in return.

“You know, you can stop with the jokes. It’s bad enough I’m in this mess, I don’t need my best friend constantly giving me a hard time.”

“You’re right,” Rich frowned. “I have been pretty hard on the two of you. I’ll stop.”

“Really? Just like that, you’re gonna stop?”

“I figured if I pressed enough, you’d realize you were making a huge mistake. That didn’t work out. You’re officially in a pickle. I suppose the two of you really are serious about keeping up the act until you get to a good point where divorce won’t seem as bad.”

“We are serious about it,” Rob replied. “We’re not doing this just for fun. We actually put a lot of thought into it.”

“Okay,” Rich breathed out. “Fine. Then I was serious about the whole couples counseling thing.”

“Haha,” Rob fake laughed as he rolled his eyes at his friend.

“No really,” Rich retorted. “I see that you two are serious about making it work for a while. I also see that you get along okay for the most part, but then there are days like this where she hates your guts and you mope around. I’m also sort of tired of hearing you complain about her one minute only to have major heart eyes when you look at her.”

“I don’t do that-“

“Yeah, you do. Look, I know I played a big part in all of this. We all did really. But, we also saw that the two of you were interested in each other right away. That’s the only reason we encouraged the two of you to hook up. Do you think it would be this bad if, say, you didn’t get married on accident?”

“I don’t know…” Rob replied.

“I think the two of you could have dated, had a real shot at a relationship. I think you liked each other. Maybe you still do.”

“I don’t hate her. You know I like her.”

“So it’s the situation that fucked all of that up?”

“Yes,” Rob admitted. “If it hadn’t gone this way in Vegas, there might have been the opportunity for something to be there.”

“I suppose that chance is long gone,” Rich replied. “However, if you’re serious about getting through the next half of the year, and at least keeping her as a friend, I’m very serious about couples counseling.”

“Since when did you become a pro at what’s best for fucked up relationships?”

“I’m not a pro. I just know people who swear by counseling. I have friends who say it saved their marriages. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to try.”

“Yeah, but this is not a real marriage. It’s not even a real relationship.”

“It is a relationship,” Rich argued. “A completely fucked up one, but a relationship nonetheless.”

“Who in their right mind would even counsel us? What do I do? Go in there and tell some shrink everything? No way, it’s too risky.”

“It’s all confidential. Whoever you work with can’t say a thing about the two of you even being there. I can’t imagine a shrink sees this situation often, but it could still help the two of you at least figure out how to get along well enough to make this lie work.”

“I don’t think Y/N would go for it,” Rob muttered in return. “She hates me. I’m not even sure if we’re gonna make it.”

“It was just a thought,” Rich replied. He gave Rob a quick pat on the back before leaving him to his thoughts once again.

Maybe the idea wasn’t so bad. Therapy could help. It certainly wasn’t a normal relationship, but it was still a relationship.

Rob spent the rest of the day weighing the option, lost in his thoughts so much that everything went by in a blur. Maybe it wasn’t a great idea to bring it up here while they were working, but he considered talking to her about it at some point.

* * *

**A Few Weeks Later- Reader’s POV**

“What do you think about couples counseling?” Rob asked suddenly.

It was out of the blue. The two of you were lazing about the house, watching TV together when he brought it up. An interesting thing to bring up considering the fact that this was a day when you were actually getting along. The last con weekend had been rough, and you had been treating him poorly mostly due to the fact that you had been humiliated by his denial of you. Nearly two weeks later and you were still embarrassed, although you did try to get back on good terms with him.

Today though, his suggestion was not something that you had been expecting. At this point, you really did believe that the two of you just had to put up with each other long enough to get through this.

You raised a brow at him, displeased with the thought of it.

“Really?” You asked. “How is that even a thing you’re considering? We’re not a real couple, Rob. We only have to act like it, we don’t actually have relationship issues to fix here.”

“Rich suggested it,” he mumbled in return.

“Of course he did,” you scoffed. “Hasn’t he given up on giving us a hard time about this yet? Seriously, the nerve of that guy.”

“That’s the thing. He has given up on trying to talk us out of it.”

“Yet, he suggests asinine ideas to make us look like idiots. Even worse, you buy into it.”

“He thinks it will help us learn to get along better,” he argued. “You know, so that we can keep doing this fake marriage thing without letting other people know that we usually can’t stand each other.”

“I can’t stand that you listen to him,” you admitted.

The entire idea was stupid. Why should you spend the money and waste the time seeing a therapist when this wasn’t even real? Rob had made it clear that there was nothing really here between the two of you the moment he decided to shoot you down in your hotel room.

“What have the last few days been about anyway?” He asked, quickly changing the subject. “You’ve been so mean. You’re the one who kissed me for ‘practice’. That wasn’t my fault.”

“I didn’t say it was,” you snapped. “You’ve just been extra annoying lately.”

“Is this because we didn’t have sex?” He asked. He raised a brow at you, a small smile forming on his lips just to tease you. “Are you that frustrated?”

“You’re an idiot,” you mumbled. You could feel yourself blush now. No way you would ever admit  to him just how hurt your feelings had been that night. You’d never give him the satisfaction of knowing that you wanted him in that way.

“Well, what is it then?”

“It’s this entire situation!” You shouted. “We’re supposed to be able to get along for the sake of making this look real. But, I’m just angry that it even happened. I know there’s no turning back at this point, but forgive me for still being pissed about it.”

“Okay,” he said softly, trying to ease the building tension. “You’re pissed. I get it. But if we keep going back and forth with getting along and then fighting over everything, I don’t know if I can stick it out. I know this isn’t real; but if we want it to look real, maybe we need to treat it as if it is real. Because whether we like it or not, it is actually legitimate.”

“This is the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard of,” you scoffed.

“That’s fair, but will you at least do it for me?”

“For you?”

“Look, I’ve given up a lot at your request for this marriage, the least you can do is come with me to one session. Just to see if it helps.”

Instead of snapping at him again over the ridiculousness of his request, you considered it. Yes, you had demanded that he think before acting. You had all but taken away his freedom of doing whatever he wanted, with whomever he wanted for the sake of saving face. You knew a time would come when he would make some sort of request of you as well.

You let out a frustrated sigh. At least he wasn’t asking for something huge. A little embarrassing, yes; but it was nothing compared to what you continuously asked for from him.

“Fine,” you answered through gritted teeth. “Just one meeting.”

“Really?” He asked, sort of surprised that you had given in.

“You’re right,” you replied, almost sarcastically. “This is an equal marriage I suppose. You get one request of me, and you’ve used it for this. I hope you chose wisely.”

He frowned in response as you excused yourself from the living room.

A perfectly nice day had been ruined by this suggestion, and now you just didn’t want to look at him.

* * *

**A few days later- Reader’s POV**

“Hmm, Doctor Stevens,” you muttered as you eyed the nameplate on the desk.

“You can call me Stephanie,” the doctor responded. “I like to keep it casual.”

“I bet you do,” you muttered as you took a seat next to Rob on the small couch.

“So, what brings you to me today?” She began. You watched her as she took out a clipboard and readied her pen. Immediately, you felt as if you were being judged and you didn’t like that.

“What are you going to write on that?” You asked.

“Oh, I take notes during sessions. It helps me get a clearer picture of the issues going on. It also helps me to find the best route to deal with those issues.”

You grinned just then, sort of intrigued at how she was going to handle this mess. You and Rob had agreed to go along with it as if it hadn’t been a mistake. Even in the privacy of a therapist’s office, you didn’t want to let anyone in on your lie if you could avoid it. Now, you had second thoughts. Maybe if you were truthful, this woman wouldn’t want to see you again and you’d have an excuse not to have to do this.

“So, I understand you’re married,” she began.

“Yup,” you replied simply.

“Would you say that you’re generally a happy couple?”

“Oh, we’re not actually a couple,” you said dryly.

“Honey,” Rob bit out. “Don’t embarrass me.”

“What?” You asked before turning your attention to Stephanie. “This is a safe space, right?”

“Yes, the safest,” she promised.

“Okay, so yes, my husband and I are married. But, it’s not a real marriage.”

She glanced over to Rob, waiting for his input. He said nothing though, just averted his eyes to the ground and proceeded to look humiliated.

“Oh-” She replied, confused by your statement. “I’m not sure I understand…”

“You’re about to,” you grinned.

“Okay, maybe we can start off with some questions before we delve into what you mean by that,” she began, looking at you quizzically for a moment. “It will help me to get a better sense of the relationship and it’s issues.”

“Shoot,” you replied.

“How long have you been married?”

“Two months almost,” Rob answered.

“How long did you date before you got married?”

“Oh, we didn’t,” you replied.

“You didn’t- date each other?”

“Nope,” you replied.

Stephanie set her pen down for a moment, staring at her notes as if she was suddenly confused at how to approach this. You had to admit, you felt a great deal of pleasure in seeing her so lost.

“Okay… why did you choose each other?” She was determined to continue with her questions, even if she needed to take a moment to let the answers sink in. “What was it about the other person that made you decide you wanted to be together?”

You looked at Rob before considering how to answer this one. You could lie about this part and keep up the act that Rob had insisted on, but this was a safe place after all.

“I met him at a work thing and thought he was cute. I flirted a bit, got really drunk, and married him.”

“So, how long after that first meeting did you get married?”

“Oh, it was the same day,” you replied quickly. “We literally met and got married that night.”

“Oh…”

“It was a crazy weekend in Vegas,” Rob cut in, smiling uncomfortably as he added his two cents. “We were both pretty wasted. Who knew that Vegas weddings were legit?”

“So, you got married without meaning to?”

“Yeah, it was the alcohol,” Rob admitted.

“So, you meant it when you said this wasn’t a real marriage?”

“Exactly,” you replied. “We didn’t even know each other. Things just got out of hand and, well, here we are.”

“You didn’t get it annulled when you realized what you had done?” She looked even more confused now, and you waited for her to kick you out of her office for wasting her time. In fact, you had been hoping that’s what you would accomplish here.

“Well, we have a whole set of reasons for not doing that,” Rob replied. “It’s all sort of fucked up.”

“We have high-profile careers,” you added. “We thought it would be best to just stay married and deal with it later on, especially since I’m new to the show and I had just accidentally married the fandoms beloved Rob Benedict. Not to mention he just got divorced a few months prior to this.”

She sat back in her chair, taking a deep breath as she tried to process this little bit of information. You smiled to yourself at the thought that you had seemed to quickly throw her off her game; a real feat considering she made a living out of helping couples deal with their messy lives. Little did she know, this was just the first layer of you and Rob’s issues. You were about to fuck up her entire outlook on relationships.

“People are already talking,” you continued. “All day long… every day since this happened, all I see are the things people are saying. A few seem to be happy for us. Mostly, people can see right through the lie. You wouldn’t believe the rumors that are out there about us right now. You can’t understand what this could do to our careers… mine mostly, if they learned the truth. In the end, we just want to make people believe that it was real and that we’re trying to actually be married. Our hope is that a few months from now, they’ll stop talking about us. We think they’ll forget about it, buy into the lie finally, and then we can end it without raising suspicion.”

“You’re essentially lying to the world to protect yourselves.” It wasn’t even a question. She knew this and stated it outright.

“If there was any other way to escape this with our dignity intact, we’d do that,” you retorted. “There’s no bouncing back from admitting to a fuck up like this. This is major, this is serious, something that people don’t take lightly. We never wanted to be those people. But, here we are.”

“Okay, let’s shift to the basic questions I ask every couple. I’m not sure if any of this applies in this… interesting situation, but answer the best you can.”

You and Rob nodded, willing to play along.

“Who makes most of the decisions?”

You raised your hand and Rob again nodded in agreement.

“It’s true, she tells me what to do basically.”

“What is the one thing that your spouse does repeatedly that irritates you?”

You glanced at Rob, already trying to pick just one irritating thing to mention out of the entire list you had in your mind.

“Well,” Rob started first, “she sometimes leaves her coffee cups all over the house. Like, I literally find them everywhere and have to clean up after her.”

“Really?” You asked in confusion. “That’s the most irritating thing I do? Out of everything else you could say, that’s what you picked?”

“Yeah, I mean, you’re not irritating. Just- I hate finding your coffee mugs everywhere. It’s even worse when you use multiple ones in one day.”

“Oh,” you said softly as you subconsciously pushed back all of the things you had been thinking about. You should probably play a little nicer. “Okay, so,” you began as you looked at Rob, “you’re a terrible sleeper. You never fall asleep easily and you toss and turn and wake up constantly.”

“That annoys you?” He asked.

“Yeah, I like to sleep,” you explained, “and it’s hard to sleep when you can’t. Thank god I only have to deal with it during work weekends.”

“What does that mean?” Stephanie asked.

“Oh, we don’t sleep together at home. Actually, I’m only staying at his place while my place is being renovated. For now, I have my own room. During convention weekends though, they get us a room to share.”

“I see,” she said as she scribbled more notes on her clipboard. “Okay, next question, what are the unspoken rules in your marriage?”

“Um, don’t let anyone know it’s a lie,” you answered.

“Also, you made the rule that I’m not allowed to have a social life,” Rob pointed out.

“First of all, that’s a spoken rule,” you corrected him, “and it’s only a rule because you’re an idiot.”

Rob chose not to argue with that one.

“What is the goal of this marriage?”

“To make it to the end of July,” you replied.

“Also, to not let people in on the fact that it was accidental,” Rob added.

“You’re absolutely right,” you said as you smiled at him. At least the two of you were on the same page about some things. That had to be good.

“Alright, what does a good marriage look like?”

You and Rob both stopped just then. You paused, very quiet as you thought about it. Perhaps you hadn’t expected the question. Either way, neither of you spouted off a quick answer like you had been doing.

“Well, I don’t know,” Rob answered finally. “I don’t have a great history of good marriages. My first one ended badly and my current one is a lie… so, I don’t know if I can weigh in.”

“Looking outside of your own marriage,” she said softly, “what do you think a good marriage looks like?”

“I think… it’s made up of two people who genuinely care about each other, who connect in a way that you don’t with just anyone. I think it’s all about how much you can laugh together, and cry together, and how you get through things. I think a good marriage is recognizing the hard stuff, but coming home to that person at the end of the day because you want to.” Rob paused briefly, glancing in your direction for just a moment before continuing. “It’s wanting to make things work and wanting to get through everything together.”

“Is that the most important part?” She asked. “Dealing with the hard stuff?”

“No. That’s important, sure. But I think a good marriage is a lot of things.”

“Why did your last marriage fail?”

“Because we didn’t have all of that,” Rob replied. “After a while, she just stopped wanting to come home to try to get through the hard stuff.”

You stared at him, deeply touched by his honest answer.

“What about you, Y/N? What do you think a good marriage looks like?”

“All of what he said,” you said honestly. “Accepting the difficult things, but getting through it together.”

“What does your marriage look like to others around you?”

“Sudden,” you answered. “Unexpected.”

“A bad idea,” Rob added.

“Who are those people that see your marriage that way?” She was making more notes and you really wished you knew what she was writing right now.

“Our friends mostly,” Rob explained. “Most of them were there that night. A few of them noticed that Y/N and I maybe thought the other was attractive, so they worked on setting us up. Some just wanted me to get laid so I could get over my divorce, I think the girls just wanted Y/N to be the one that helped me do that. They took us out for drinks, encouraged us to talk to each other; it got out of hand. And, well, this happened. When we decided to stick it out for a few months, they didn’t approve at all.”

“They encouraged us to get an annulment, but we chose not to,” you added. “They took bets on how long we’d last. Even now, they don’t support our choice.”

“Because you’re choosing to remain in an accidental marriage in which neither of you have any real feelings for each other?”

“Yeah,” you sad softly. “That’s what our marriage looks like to them.”

“What about your families? Do they know about this?”

“No,” Rob admitted. “They’re not clued into any of the lie.”

“How did they take the news?”

“My family is not supportive at all,” you said. “They’re convinced I’ve made a mistake and don’t want anything to do with it right now.”

“What about yours?” She asked as she focused on Rob.

“My family is… actually really happy for me.”

“For us,” you added.

“They don’t know the truth. But they have met her. They love her. They’re happy for me and they want this to be the real thing for me.”

“How would they feel if they found out the truth?”

“Devastated,” he breathed out. “I never want them to know the truth. It’s going to hurt a lot less when we just get divorced later on, just say it didn’t work out.”

“How does that make you feel?”

“I feel like the world’s biggest asshole,” he chuckled.

Stephanie took a deep breath, focusing on the clipboard on her lap. She stayed quiet for a moment before moving on to something a little less serious.

“What would you say you most often argue about?”

You sat back, crossing your arms as you thought about it. There were countless things that you didn’t agree on.

“Well, I think we argue most about how we handle this situation,” Rob explained.

“How do those arguments go?”

“Usually with Y/N being right,” he laughed.

“Aw, thank you.” You smiled at him, deeply pleased that he at least recognized that you were often right.

“Do you feel that you can effectively communicate with each other?”

You both looked at each other again, each of you knowing damn well that the big problem here was communication. You had a difficult time with talking about certain things, mostly because you were caught up in trying to understand the mix of feelings you had through all of this. The fact that you were confused wasn’t something that you wanted to bring up, not at this point.

“No,” you replied honestly, still holding eye contact with him. “There are a lot of things that we don’t discuss, even if we’d like to. It’s hard when you don’t know the person you’re married to.” You turned your attention back to her. “This is… obviously not easy. How can you have communication with someone that you don’t know?”

“Would you like to have that?” She asked seriously. “Would you like to be able to go to each other with anything?”

Rob shrugged in return as you glanced at him again. He gave you a look as if to say he might be okay with it if you were.

“Yeah, sure,” you answered. “I mean, we don’t have anyone else in our lives who understand what we’re going through right now. Might be nice to be able to turn to each other on the rough days.”

“I agree,” Rob added.

“So you admit that you only have each other in this certain situation?”

“Yeah, I guess each other is all we have,” you said softly.

“It would be nice to have the other there for you, wouldn’t it? It would be a good feeling to have someone on your side?”

You only nodded, unable to reply as you let it sink in. She was right. Neither of you really had anyone else; not anyone who understood what this was like anyway.

“Tell me something,” she began after taking a moment to study the two of you again. “What do you hope to gain from these sessions? I mean, you’re both very aware that this isn’t real. You’re faking a marriage for the sake of your careers and images, at least you’ve come to terms with that. But, what can you really gain from couples counseling when you’re not even really a couple?”

“We’d like to just learn how to get along better so that we can survive this thing,” Rob answered.

“Is that it?”

“Look, Rob’s not a bad guy. He’s a good man. I know we didn’t want this, and we might be beyond stupid for doing this, but I also don’t want to lose him completely from my life just because this is where we are.”

“Okay, if you’re serious about doing this and about making this… really weird marriage work, then schedule your next session with my secretary.”

“Really?” You asked, sort of surprised that she was still willing to help you. In fact, you were shocked that she hadn’t kicked you out of her office earlier.

“If you’re willing to continue this,” she began, “then I am as well.”

“I guess we’ll have to decide if this is for us,” Rob replied. He turned to look at you, almost pleading with his eyes.

“I just have one more question,” she added. “Has there, at any point since your wedding night, ever been a moment of intimacy between you. This could be anything that real couples engage in; kissing, sex, intimate moments of any kind?”

“Well, I think that’s a discussion that could take up an entire session,” you replied.

“So there has been?”

“Okay, Cliff’s Notes version; we’ve kissed, yes. We slept together on our wedding night, even though we vaguely remember even that. There was one night where we almost had sex, but he shot me down.”

“I did not shoot you down-“ Rob began, looking shocked.

“Yeah, you did. We made out in an elevator,” you explained, as you turned your attention back to Stephanie. “Like, hot and heavy making out. I thought he was gonna fuck me right there. We got to the hotel room; clothing was removed, more making out happened, and he stopped me.”

“You seem very upset by this,” she pointed out.

“Uh, I am not,” you replied, trying to sound as if you weren’t upset at all. “I do not want to have sex with my husband. It was a heat of the moment thing, and I’m glad he stopped it. I only brought it up because you asked.”

“Were you both drunk that night as well?”

“No…” Rob interjected. “Not at all.”

“You’re right,” she replied, tapping her pen against her chin as she thought. “This is definitely a discussion for the next session. I have a feeling that we’ll need to take a lot of time to focus on it.”

“Are we going to do this again?” You asked Rob.

Truthfully, this entire thing had been sort of nice. You were both holding a lot in, trying to keep the whole thing secret, and your friends weren’t at all helpful when you just needed to talk to someone. Maybe coming back to talk one more time wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

“I’m okay with it if you are,” he replied.

“Okay,” you smiled. “We’ll schedule the next appointment.”

“You have to know,” Stephanie began, “I’ve never dealt with a situation such as this; but I think the two of you want to at least remain friendly with each other. We can work on that. I’ll teach you some effective communication skills, so that you can avoid hurting each other.”

“That sounds great,” you said as you and Rob prepared yourselves to leave. You gathered your belongings and headed for the door together. “Oh, one more thing,” you began quickly, “if you tell anyone that we were here, or if you mention this to anyone, I’ll personally sue your ass.”

* * *

Back at Rob’s place, the tension that had been present in the air since you had returned from the convention had lifted.

You spent the rest of the evening together, having civilized conversations and spending actual time together. You talked over a meal that you had cooked together; and for the first time in a long while, you actually felt happy to be here.

The confusion you kept buried over the feelings that you might have for him was still present, but you decided to hold back on expressing them for now. Yes, you had been humiliated by the way that he turned you down when things had gotten hot and heavy, and that feeling of rejection was still aching within you. You had been so certain that he wanted you just as much as you wanted him, but that moment had proven otherwise.

It was just like you to snap when you felt rejected. You hated to be led on and then stopped in your tracks, which is what you felt Rob had done to you. However, you wondered if you were the one misreading the entire thing. Perhaps it was simply a situation in which the two of you were just frustrated that you had to put on this act without letting people onto the lie. You couldn’t necessarily go looking for someone else to fulfill your needs, not if you didn’t want to risk getting caught anyway. Perhaps he just wasn’t into you like that and maybe you weren’t even interested in him like that either.

Maybe it was just the situation that had you confused. Either way, you were willing to take part in his idea of seeing a therapist. If nothing else, maybe the two of you could start to get along for the remainder of the marriage. Maybe you could still keep him as a friend somewhere down the line.

* * *

**Rob’s POV**

That night, Rob spent a good amount of time tossing and turning as usual. Y/N had been right about that at least. It wasn’t something that he really thought about often, but he was a terrible sleeper. He blamed it on his never-ending anxiety mostly. Also, it didn’t help that he was in this mess.

Right now, he was wondering if Y/N’s behavior lately had more to do with him and the way he had stopped whatever was about to happen that night at the con. She had seemed offended, and he was probably wrong, but she had also seemed slightly hurt by his denial of her.

In the end, he had made the right decision. There was no way he could sleep with his wife without developing stronger feelings for her. At this point, he had at least admitted to himself that he was into her. He had to do what he could to save himself from more hurt, even if that meant turning her down for the physical part of a ‘relationship.’

He let out a loud sigh as he flipped himself onto his side. Nothing he did made him comfortable anymore. As he moved, he glanced at the doorway; noticing someone standing there quietly. It startled him until he remembered that he had Y/N living there with him. Sometimes he forgot.

“Y/N?” He asked as he squinted in the dark. He sat up and turned on the bedside lamp, looking back at her now in the light. “What are you doing?”

“I was just getting some water and I heard you moving around and sighing,” she explained. “Your door was open so I figured you weren’t doing anything unsavory.”

“So you decided to watch me sleep?”

“You weren’t sleeping,” she smiled. “Rough night?”

“Well, you know me,” he chuckled, “I’m a terrible sleeper.”

“May I?” She asked as she took a small step into the room.

“Uh, sure?” He replied, confused by what she meant.

She stepped into the room, making her way toward the bed. She set her water glass down on the bedside table before pulling the covers down. She gave him a questioning look again, asking for permission. Rob nodded slightly, still confused.

She crawled under the covers then, pulling them up over her body and turned toward him.

“Is this okay?” She asked. “We have shared beds before.”

“Uh- uh, yeah,” he stuttered in return. “Even though you hate that I have a hard time sleeping?”

She smiled softly at him and held out an arm to him. Now, he was even more confused; but he moved so that he could lay down against her anyway.

She let him get comfortable and he had to admit, it was nice to have this sort of contact with someone, especially her. Before he could ask what this was, his breath caught once he felt the tips of her fingers run through his hair. He looked up at her, questioning her with his stare. She said nothing; just smiled at him as she began to card her fingers through his hair again and again.

She was gentle, and Rob shivered at the sensation of having her do this. It was almost intimate in a way; the feeling of her fingertips running against his scalp, the slight tug here and there as they got caught up in his curls.

He didn’t understand what this was, but he knew it would be stupid to argue.

He closed his eyes after a while, when he was certain that this was actually happening. He relaxed into her touch, no longer filled to the brim with anxiety even though he had her body pressed against his. All he focused on was the soothing sensation of having her touch him like this.

Before he even realized it, he had drifted off to sleep. Little did he know, it would be the best sleep of his life.


	16. Part 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Couples counseling seems to be going well. Rob and Reader are getting along better than ever. Their domestic bliss is short lived, however, when Reader’s place is done being renovated.

**Rob’s POV**

He woke up the next morning alone. He was sure that last night had been real though. Y/N had laid with him in bed, coaxing sleep from him by the way she ran her hands through his hair. He didn’t remember drifting off, all he knew was that she had been there.

He glanced around the room, daylight peeking through the curtains, as he assessed the situation. Perhaps she had left some time during the night. It only made sense that she wouldn’t stay given the fact that she had her own room and all.

He got himself out of bed, amazed at how refreshed he felt. He must have gotten a full nights sleep, something that he wasn’t really used to. He padded out to the living room and found her sitting on the couch, quietly drinking a cup of coffee as she scrolled through her phone.

She glanced up when she noticed him, smiling.

“Good morning,” she said happily. “How did you sleep?”

“Amazingly,” he admitted. “How did you know that would help?”

“I didn’t really know,” she replied. “I just figured I’d give it a shot.”

“Well, it worked. I feel pretty great this morning.”

“Good,” she chuckled.

“Is there more coffee?”

“There is,” she said as she lifted her cup to him. “And this is my only mug today and I’ll be sure to put it in the dishwasher when I’m done.”

He grinned at her before heading to the kitchen to get his own coffee.

“So,” she called out to him as he prepared his coffee. “I have some things that I need to do today. Mostly just some shopping for my place. I was thinking that you could tag along if you’d like.”

“Really?” He asked as he grabbed his coffee and headed back into the living room. “You want me to go shopping with you?”

“I’ve got to pick out flooring,” she explained. “I just figured it wouldn’t hurt if we were seen in public together.”

“Uh, sure. I guess we could do that together.”

“Just make sure we don’t tell anyone it’s for my place,” she said. “After all, we’re happily married and obviously living together.”

Rob smiled in return, nodding his understanding.

“Sure, only if you agree to have lunch with me today.”

“Oh, I suppose,” she replied in fake sarcasm.

Rob sat on the other side of the couch, glancing over at her as she grinned at him.

“This is nice,” he began. “I mean, the two of us, sitting here having coffee together… not fighting.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

“How long do you think it’ll last?” He asked. It came out as a joke almost, but deep down it was a serious question on his part. He was tired of arguing and fighting. He hated that he upset her and often blamed himself for her frustrations.

“That depends on how long you can go without annoying me.”

“I’m trying not to.”

“I know,” she said softly. “I appreciate that.”

* * *

Later that morning, Y/N eagerly dragged Rob out of the house for their day together. It wasn’t much, he mostly assumed she just needed help picking out flooring, but he was happy to do it. Despite everything, he did want to spend time with her. He only hoped that he could do it without letting her in on how much he actually liked her.

Those feelings were obviously not something that would ever be reciprocated on her part; so all he could do was play nice and try to play it cool if he could.

“I have to admit,” Y/N said as she wandered the aisles at the store, “I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“You never shopped for house stuff before?” Rob asked as he trailed behind her.

“Nope. I don’t even know what to look for.”

Not that he understood much about renovating a home, but Rob tried to help best he could. He pointed out different samples when Y/N finally decided that she wanted hardwood floors. They browsed together, discussing the pros and cons of each sample.

“I think you put a lot more thought into this than you think you did,” Rob said as Y/N finally decided on what she wanted. He glanced at his watch. They had been here for almost two hours.

“Well, it is my home,” she began. “I only wish I had someone that I could turn to for help with everything.”

“I can help,” Rob offered.

“I know,” she smiled, “I sort of meant like, a husband or something. A partner to help in the decisions.”

Rob smirked at her as if to remind her of their predicament.

“You know what I mean,” she laughed. “When this is all done, I’ll just go back home… alone.”

“Well, I’ll still be around,” he reminded her.

“Yeah, until this whole thing ends anyway. Then I go back to being single and lonely.”

“How come you never got married?” Rob asked cautiously. He didn’t want to upset her, but he was also interested.

“I did get married,” she grinned.

“Like, for real married.”

“It just never happened for me,” she shrugged.

Rob followed as she made her way to the checkout line.

“I had some serious boyfriends, sure. No one that I wanted to spend my life with though. After awhile, I just stopped dating really. I liked being on my own, especially when work picked up and I just didn’t have time for anyone.”

“That does sound lonely,” he replied.

“It is sometimes,” she admitted. “But for now, I have a pretty great fake husband to keep me company.”

Rob felt himself blush at her words and the way she smiled at him. He wasn’t very used to seeing her smile, and he wanted to hold onto how lovely it was to see that smile.

* * *

Rob picked the lunch spot, and he escorted Y/N into the restaurant after they had made one more long stop at another store. He didn’t realize that renovations in her mind meant more than flooring and tile; it also meant that she apparently had to purchase all new decor for her house. Still, he had tagged along, trying his best to please her and not let the day get spoilt by anything.

He moved to pull her chair out for her and she thanked him as she sat down. He took his spot across from her and he felt his stomach flip at the way she seemed to watch him almost adoringly.

“You’re being very sweet today,” she pointed out.

“I’m always sweet,” he replied. “I’m sorry if there was a time when I wasn’t.”

“Well, given everything, I don’t expect you to be.”

“You’ve been pretty nice as well.” He tried to stop himself from saying it out loud. The last thing he wanted to do was upset her. Given her reactions to most things, he figured this statement would piss her off.

“I’m trying,” she replied calmly. “You don’t deserve half the shit I put you through.”

“Is it just me or is couples counseling actually working for us?”

She let out a laugh, making a face as if to say that he wasn’t wrong.

“Maybe,” she said. “If nothing else, it has definitely given me a little more insight on how we interact.”

“Yeah, it kinda felt good to talk about some of those things.”

“It did,” she agreed. “I’ve also been thinking a lot about how we discussed the fact that we just have each other right now.”

“Oh?” He asked curiously.

“Yeah, that really stuck with me. No one else gets this. No one understands what we’re feeling, and they certainly don’t understand why we’re doing this. At the end of the day, we only have each other. Maybe it’s best if we can go to each other with certain things.”

“Almost like a real relationship,” he chuckled.

“Exactly. I mean, it’s not real. But, it is in a way. As confusing as that sounds.”

“I get it,” he said as he watched her. “We can be there for each other, because no one else is there for us right now.”

“I would like that.”

They got through their lunch, still having a nice time. Finally, it felt as if there had come a point when they weren’t at each other’s throats. She seemed happier than usual, and Rob felt happier than usual.

The only thing that he could possibly regret about them getting along like this was the way he felt just being with her today. He had sort of stopped things from going too far that night during the convention, even if he so badly wanted to be with her. He knew he had to do it simply to keep his feelings for her from getting too out of control.

He wanted to revel in this moment. He wanted to let it play out and he hoped that this could continue for the remainder of their marriage. He would do his best to make sure that happened.

But, he also knew that this was not going to end well for him. He sat there, listening to her talk when he realized that his initial feelings for her weren’t stopping. He had thought they could at least be friends, but he knew that he was falling for her even more.

Suddenly, the thought of the two of them treating this like a real marriage; going to each other with problems, confiding in each other, going to couples therapy, and spending seemingly unimportant days like this together; was only going to make things worse for him.

He wasn’t supposed to fall in love with his fake wife, especially not when she spent most of their time together treating him terribly. There was no going back though. All he could do now was try to not make it obvious.

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

The following week dragged on. You spent a lot of time at your place now that the big work was done. You stressed over decisions that had to be made and had basically gotten to the point where you didn’t even want to deal with any of it. The only solace you found was when you’d return to Rob’s place in the evening. Weirdly enough, you felt safe there, comfortable even.

He was rarely around during this time. He had been busy with his band in the studio, so the two of you hadn’t really seen each other much throughout the week. Sometimes you’d catch up for lunch or dinner, mostly moving through those meetings quickly so that you could each go on with your busy lives.

Almost every night though, you found yourself in his bed. It wasn’t anything other than just you being there to help him sleep. He learned very quickly that the one night of you playing with his hair was all he needed to relax, so he took full advantage of that. You didn’t mind though. Being here at his place had never been fully comfortable for you. But, on the nights when you were able to slip under his sheets and hold him like that, those were the only nights that you actually felt that you belonged somewhere.

You wouldn’t admit this to him, but you held onto that feeling by offering your services each night. He never declined; and eventually, it became something normal for the two of you.

By the end of the week, just a couple of days before you were both due to fly out for yet another convention, you were cleared to finally move back in to your own place.

The news should have been a relief, but it really wasn’t. You had become accustomed to seeing Rob every day, and you weren’t sure if you would enjoy being on your own again. More importantly, you understood that the only thing that was waiting for you at your own place was a big empty bed that you would be alone in every night.

You briefly considered going on as if your place wasn’t quite done yet; but you knew that starting off with another lie right now when the two of you were getting along so well wasn’t a great option. So, you sucked it up and convinced yourself that it was for the best that you get back to your old life.

Nothing about this right now was normal, at least you could go back to some sort of normal by not living with Rob anymore.

* * *

“My place is done,” you announced as you strolled into the kitchen that evening. You sat at the counter, watching Rob as he moved about the room, busy cooking.

“It is?” He asked with a frown. “That was fast.”

“It’s been well over six weeks,” you laughed.

“Well, time flew by,” he replied with a smile.

“I can be out of your hair tonight,” you said.

“I’m not kicking you out,” Rob chuckled. “Just because your place is done doesn’t mean you have to go right this minute.”

“I should though.”

“You know,” Rob began as he avoided eye contact. “You can stay here for as long as you want to.”

Rob looked up at you and you couldn’t help but note a vague sense of sadness in his eyes. Why he would be sad over having his house back, you didn’t know.

“Maybe I can stay one more night.”

“You know, it’s going to be a pain trying to move back into your place right before a convention,” he explained. You watched as he plated dinner for each of you and you followed him to the table where he set everything out. You took your spot as he moved back to the kitchen only to return with a bottle of wine and two glasses. “You can wait until after this weekend if you want.”

“It would really be okay for me to hang out even though my place is ready?” You asked.

You watched him pour you each a glass of wine.

“I insist,” he replied.

“Fine, since you’re so pushy about it,” you joked. “I’ll hang out for a while longer. After the con, I promise I’ll leave you alone.”

“It’s gonna be weird not having you around,” he muttered.

“It’ll be weird not being around.”

“One more night at least?” He asked, almost as if he was making sure that you were actually agreeing.

“You need help sleeping again?” You grinned in return.

“What can I say,” he laughed. “You’ve got magic fingers.”

“Way to make it sound dirty,” you replied.

He chuckled softly, taking another drink of his wine.

“We’ve also got another session schedule after we get back from the convention,” he reminded you. “That is, if you’re still interested.”

“I told you I’d go,” you replied.

“Even though you won’t be living here anymore?”

He sounded almost sad about it. While you were sort of sad at the thought as well, you knew you couldn’t let him see that.

“Trust me, I’m excited to harass our therapist with more of our issues,” you joked. “I bet she’s never seen a couple quite like us.”

He gave you a big smile before taking a drink of his wine. You smirked back at him, following his movement. Nothing else was said about it. The two of you enjoyed another dinner together, falling into a nice conversation about nothing in particular.

You had to admit, you would really miss this. You would actually really miss not seeing him every day.


	17. Part 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During another con weekend, Reader and Rob are getting along better than ever. Their friends are wondering why. Rich is concerned that his friend might be taking his advice wrong. It’s not a real marriage after all, so why is Rob acting like it is? Meanwhile, Kim is expressing her concerns about the marriage to Reader. What none of them know though, is that behind closed doors; Reader and Rob are definitely getting in deeper than any of them ever imagined.

**Rob’s POV**

Rob made the best of the next couple of days since he had convinced Y/N to stay at his place until the con was over.

It made sense for her to not stress out over getting back into her house right away, even if it wouldn’t have been such a big deal.

Maybe his intentions were selfish. He really didn’t want her to go yet though, not when things were so good between them. But, she didn’t have to know that.

After a couple of days spent still in what Rob referred to as wedded bliss, they headed out to their next con together.

Anyone who would see them at this point would think that they were seriously married, based on the way they interacted now. Y/N made sure to take the lead with the hand-holding and innocent kisses in public, which Rob never argued with.

Yes, they were obviously convincing as of late, which was a great thing for their images.

At this point, he had to just actively remind himself that it was all just for show. No matter how real Y/N’s touches, kisses, or smiles felt for him, it was still an act.

Once they had arrived in Nashville, they settled into their room as Rob began to make plans with the others for dinner.

“Looks like everyone is meeting at a place nearby for dinner and drinks,” Rob announced as Y/N freshened up in the bathroom. “You wanna go out?”

“Sounds like a plan,” she replied.

Rob leaned against the door-frame of the bathroom, watching her as she applied her lipstick. She had changed from her comfortable travel clothes and was now wearing something a lot more dressy and a lot more form hugging. Rob realized that he had been holding his breath as he looked at her, only letting it out when she turned to smile at him.

“You look beautiful,” he said, catching himself as he let his thought slip from his lips. Maybe he was overstepping.

“Thank you,” she grinned. “You look great too. I’m a sucker for a man in glasses.”

Rob swallowed hard and subconsciously reached up to push his frames up on his face.

When Y/N was ready, they each gathered their belongings and headed out the door to meet everyone for dinner. As they walked toward the elevators, Y/N quickly grabbed his hand, holding it tightly in her own. Rob looked at her and she smiled back at him.

“Don’t forget we’re still married,” she explained. “No harm in looking like it’s a happy marriage.”

“Is it not a happy marriage?” He asked.

She let out a chuckle and shrugged at him.

“Well, I am pretty happy,” she admitted. “It’s been a good past few weeks.”

“Yeah, it has been. I think we’re gonna do a great job of convincing people that this is real,” Rob said as he squeezed her hand.

“You ready for this?”

“I am if you are,” Rob smiled.

* * *

Rob and Y/N met their friends at the restaurant and had a nice dinner with everyone. No one brought up the fact that they were still making a mistake, which helped Rob to relax. He was already always on edge ever since the aftermath of Vegas, but having everyone else seemingly okay with how things were going now definitely helped to alleviate the situation.

Even better than that, Y/N had been a joy to be around. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think for a moment that they were well on their way to having a normal marriage that maybe didn’t have to end at all.

That was wishful thinking on his part. While he thought that he could easily stay with her and really work at making this marriage legitimate, he also understood that that wasn’t what she wanted. Still, there was no problem with enjoying it while he could.

After dinner, they all headed to a nearby bar where they found an empty table and promptly took it over, talking excitedly among each other.

The con weekend would kick off tomorrow, and everyone was in high spirits. Once they were all arranged in their chosen spots, focus was put on who would be in charge of the first round of drinks.

“I am going to the ladies room,” Y/N announced. “Can you get me a drink?”

“Of course,” Rob replied. “Don’t be gone too long.”

Almost as if by habit, Rob leaned in and placed a soft kiss to her cheek, eliciting a slight blush from her as she leaned into it.

“Well, the two of you look extra cozy,” Rich muttered. “Almost as if you didn’t hate each other’s guts.”

“I never hated her,” Rob replied as he watched her walk away. He turned his attention to Rich, who was standing with his arms crossed, almost scowling at his friend. “And I don’t think she ever really hated me.”

“Still, that’s too cozy for a couple who shouldn’t be married in the first place.”

“Whatever,” Rob sighed. “You’re the one who suggested couple counseling.”

“Yeah, so that you’d get along. Not so that you could behave like an actual couple.”

“What can I say?” Rob beamed. “The counseling thing really worked better than I expected.”

“You had one session,” Rich reminded him.

“I know, but it helped. Things have been great. We haven’t argued once this last week. She’s been great. I think we’ve really got this marriage thing down.”

“Wait,” Kim chimed in. “you went to couples counseling?”

“Yeah, Rich suggested it,” Rob replied happily. “It’s great, it’s actually really working.”

Kim frowned and eyed Rich, seemingly disapproving of the idea of it.

“Sounds like a very… coupley thing to do,” she muttered.

“Well, we are married,” he replied.

“Yeah, accidentally,” she reminded him. “The two of you should have just ended it before it got so out of hand.”

“Out of hand?” Rob asked, pulling back in surprise. “You think it’s gotten out of hand?”

“Oh, come on,” Kim rolled her eyes. “I see the way you look at her. You’re into her. This is not just an act for you anymore.”

“I am not,” he scoffed in return.

“Well…” Rich mumbled, shrugging his shoulders.

“What?”

“Kim’s right. I suggested the couples thing so that the two of you would at least get along. It’s pretty obvious that you’re in pretty deep man.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. I am not into my wife. We’re just… really good actors.”

“In this case,” Kim added, “she is. You, not so much.”

“Come on guys,” Rob sighed. “Can’t you just be happy for us? We’re doing great. We haven’t fought in weeks…”

“That’s a good thing,” Kim replied. “I mean, it seems like people are really buying into the entire act. But, we know how you are Rob. This is going to be hard on you in the end.”

“I think I know what I’m doing,” he defended himself. “This isn’t real, I know that. If you think that it’s become too real for me, then I’m going to accept that as a compliment on my acting skills.”

Rich and Kim dropped the conversation when they noticed Y/N returning to the table.

Rob’s anxiety over the way his friends called him out waned as they let the whole thing drop. No one needed to know that they were right. He knew that he might be getting in too deep, but no one else needed to be aware of that. 

* * *

Later that night, after everyone was sufficiently drunk and tired, Y/N decided that bed was the best option right now.

“Hey, Rob,” Y/N said as she leaned against him. “I think I’m ready to call it a night.”

She let out a yawn and Rob wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Yeah, it’s getting late. Let’s head back to the room.”

Rob stood up from his seat and held out a hand to help her up.

“Let me say goodnight to the girls and I’ll meet you at the exit. Can you grab my stuff for me?”

“Of course,” he smiled. “I’ll wait for you out back.”

“You’re the best,” Y/N said as she she leaned toward him. She placed a quick kiss to his face, smiling as she let her hand linger for just a moment against his chest.

“Husband of the year,” she called out with a laugh as she disappeared from view in search of the girls..

Rob turned to Rich, grinning from ear to ear.

“You hear that?” He asked Rich with a smirk. “Husband of the year.”

“Husband of the…?” Rich echoed, shaking his head in disbelief. “Do you even hear yourself when you talk?

“What? I’m a great husband,” Rob mumbled as he picked up his and Y/N’s jackets.

“Am I the only one who remembers that this is supposed to be a fake marriage?”

“Calm down,” Rob scolded. “We’re getting along. Let me bask in it for a while.”

“I just- don’t think you should get too serious about this.”

“I’m not,” Rob replied. “I understand what this is Rich. But, I think it’s okay for my wife and I to at least get along while we’re going through this.”

“Okay,” Rich said, throwing his hands up in defeat. “Just- I know how you are. You can’t go falling for someone when you know it’s not going to work out.”

* * *

**The following morning- Reader’s POV**

You were sitting in the greenroom, mostly alone now that Rob and the guys were on stage. You closed your eyes, taking the moment to rest before your day got hectic.

“How are things?” You heard a voice ask. You opened your eyes to see Kim standing near you.

“Good,” you answered. “Things are good.”

“I mean between you and Rob.”

“Still good,” you laughed. “Why?”

“Well, the last I heard, you weren’t exactly getting along,” she pointed out as she joined you on the couch. “You seem different this weekend.”

“We’re doing well. We actually saw a couples counselor recently.”

“I heard? Why did you agree to that exactly?”

“Well, this is a difficult marriage.”

“Yeah, obviously. But isn’t that kind of stuff for people who are in actual marriages or actual relationships?”

“This is a marriage,” you reminded her. “Regardless of how messed up it is, I think he and I are in a relationship of sorts, right?”

“I suppose so…” she trailed off.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Kim, I know I haven’t known you for very long, but I can tell when someone is pretending to not be concerned. What?”

“I don’t know… the two of you have been really sweet with each other this weekend,” she explained. “Plus, there’s the whole counseling thing you mentioned, the fact that you were living with him, and… I don’t know. It’s almost as if you’re both treating this is something real.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?” You asked. “I mean, treat it as if it’s real to make people believe that it is?”

“No, you’re right. I just worry that this is getting too serious.”

“Really?” You asked, sort of irritated that she was even acting concerned. “Because, if I remember correctly, no one was worried when I got wasted and married him. This is serious, Kim. If you think I’m taking what we did lightly, you’re wrong. I just want to avoid looking like an asshole here.”

“You have to know that Rob is into you.”

Her words were blunt; and while you never wanted to acknowledge that you thought he was still into you, it was hard to hear someone else say it. For some reason, hearing it from her made it real, and that was the last thing you wanted.

“Well, I mean, I know he was. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be in this position.”

“You were into him too?”

“Of course.”

“Are you still interested in him?”

“What? No. That whole thing is over after what we did.”

“I’m just worried that he’s going to get hurt.”

“You think I’ll hurt him? Really?”

You were sort of hurt by her statement. You understood that these people had been friends with him longer than they had been your friends, but knowing that they were more concerned about him during all of this sort of stung. You didn’t want to play the victim here, but you had always felt as if you were the one who received the short end of the stick. This entire accidental marriage had been harder for you than it had been for Rob.

“I just… know how he is. We can all see it,” she continued.

“See what?”

“He’s falling for you,” she said softly. “That man is crazy about you, and he’s treating this like it’s a real marriage. I’m worried, Rich is worried, other people are worried.”

“He is not falling for me,” you denied. “That’s not what this is.”

“I know him,” Kim argued. “I know him better than you do. Trust me when I say that I don’t think this is an act for him anymore.”

Your breath caught as she spoke. Yes, you had thought that maybe he still liked you. But, you had also assumed that you were wrong as you realized that he was just as willing as you to put on an act. You were getting along great as friends, and that’s all this was now. She had to be wrong. He had never mentioned anything about this being too much for him. Surely he would say something if he was feeling more.

“I’m not doing this to try to hurt him,” you reminded her. “He and I both chose this. Besides, I think you’re reading into it too much. We’re getting along and we’re getting through it as friends, and that’s it.”

“Just- please be careful with him,” she said.

You shook your head at her, now annoyed that she thought you were purposely trying to hurt him. It was as if you were the only one who had made this decision. You wondered now if Rob had convinced them that this act was only happening because you wanted it to. You wondered if they even knew that you were all for annulling the marriage right away before Rob talked you out of it.

Regardless of who convinced who to do what, you knew that they were his friends first and foremost. It didn’t matter that this was all Rob’s doing in the end; they were on his side, and you were the one who would be looked at as the bad guy if things went wrong.

You decided not to argue or push it anymore, but you made a mental note to talk to Rob about this later.

* * *

Later that night, as everyone else got ready for karaoke, you decided to call it a night. You headed back to your room, sighing heavily as you plopped down on the bed.

The short conversation with Kim was still bothering you, and you replayed it in your head until you dozed off.

You felt that you had only been asleep for a few minutes when you heard someone enter the room. You opened your eyes, watching as Rob opened the door.

“Hey,” you said as he entered the room and let the door close behind him. “No karaoke tonight?”

“No, wasn’t up for it.”

“Oh,” you replied. “Since you’re here, can we talk about something?”

“Sure,” he replied.

You watched him as he kicked his shoes off and changed into a t-shirt.

“So, um, Kim said something to me today and I just wanted to get your take on it.”

“What did she say?”

“A lot of things actually,” you said, biting your lip as you tried to decide if you should mention everything. “Mostly she told me to be careful with you.”

“What does that mean?” He laughed as he joined you in bed.

“I don’t know exactly. But, I feel like she thinks that staying married was entirely my idea. I think she thinks that you’re actually into me and that I’m taking advantage of that.”

“That’s ridiculous,” he replied. “We both made this choice.”

You stared at him, wanting to remind him that you had originally decided something else. You wanted to remind him that he was the one to convince you to do this. Given how well the two of you were doing lately, you decided not to bring it up.

“I know. I just- wanted to make sure that I’m not doing anything to make this more difficult than it already is.”

“You’re not,” he grinned in return. “This has been nice, and I think we’re doing well.”

“So, the affection and all that isn’t too much for you?”

“Not at all.”

“I keep thinking about that night when we got a little carried away,” you said. “The way you stopped me… I feel like I am pushing you too far.”

“That was…” he trailed off, eyes darting away from yours as he thought about what to say. “That was just me not wanting to push you too far.”

“Yeah, maybe sleeping with each other isn’t the greatest idea,” you chuckled. “But I also need to know if I need to stop everything else.”

“Stop what?”

“All of the affection.”

“You mean the touching?” He asked as he reached over and dragged his fingertips along your arm.

Your breath caught at the simple action. You watched him as he looked you up and down, still gently touching you.

“And the kissing?” He asked, his mouth turning up in a wicked grin.

“Yeah,” you laughed. “Do I need to back off with all of that?”

“Why?” he asked. “I’m not backing off with all of that.”

“I mean, should we cut that stuff out unless we’re actually in public? We tend to be that way when we’re just around our friends; who, by the way, know all about our arrangement.”

“You’re right. Although, I kinda like all of that,” he said. “I don’t mind it if you don’t.”

“I kinda like it too,” you admitted. “But, I don’t want to lead you to believe that it’s more than what it is.”

You both stayed quiet for a moment and you shivered as you focused on the way his hand still traced along your arm. It shouldn’t have been happening at all, but you’d be lying if you said you didn’t like it. He chose to ignore your last statement.

“Can I kiss you?” Rob whispered, breaking the silence that had built up between the two of you.

“For practice?” you asked jokingly.

“No,” he replied. “Just because.”

You should have said no. There was no reason for kissing to happen when you were alone. You had learned that the hard way, and had been subsequently humiliated when it did happen in private. You felt your heart race at his question, wondering why he wanted to kiss you at all. You couldn’t say no though. In reality, you wanted him to kiss you all the time.

So, instead of turning it into another argument, you nodded, letting him know that it was okay.

He kissed you then, and you tangled your hands in his hair as he pressed his lips to yours. It wasn’t the usual innocent kiss that you reserved strictly for public settings. This one was something almost real, at least it felt that way to you.

Before you could lose yourself in it too much, he was pushing himself away, holding back as his eyes darted away from you.

“What’s wrong?” You breathed out.

“I just- I can’t do this.”

“You’re the one-” you began, panicking now that he was realizing his mistake.

“I know. I started it, but I need to stop it.”

“It’s just kissing,” you said. You ran your hands through his hair still, waiting for him to give you the okay to keep going. You couldn’t explain it, but you needed to have this with him. You craved it. It didn’t have to be anything more, but some sort of physical connection with him was important to you.

“Is it?” He asked quietly.

You didn’t need an explanation, you understood what he meant. You had been feeling the same way for quite some time. You still would never admit to him that you felt something for him, but you also very selfishly wanted to do this. You wanted that strange familiarity that you felt when you kissed him. You wanted the entire act that the two of you had been putting on to continue, not as an act, but as something possibly real.

You wanted to be with him, even though you shouldn’t want that.

“Why can’t we just pretend that we’re happy?” You asked.

You held his face in your hands, pulling him down toward you to press your lips against his again. You half expected him to push away, but he pressed against you harder, his tongue pushing past your lips to deepen the kiss.

You moaned against his mouth, closing your eyes as you enjoyed the feeling of having him this way. In your mind, you knew you shouldn’t be doing this, not with the way he had panicked over it just now. Perhaps Kim was right. Maybe this all meant more to him than you had thought. Still, you needed this, so you tried to make him understand that.

You moved toward his hand that was now exploring your body. He kept it fairly innocent, allowing himself to grip onto your waist before moving his hand down along your hip and stopping at your thigh where he gripped you again.

You wanted more, so you arched your back against his body that was already so close to yours. He reacted by pressing against you harder, but still holding back on allowing this to go any further than just kissing and touching.

After a few moments of heated making out, he pulled away from you again. He panted against your lips, seemingly forcing himself to stop.

“Is that what this is?” he asked breathlessly. “You’re still pretending? Because I’m not anymore. I am actually very happy.”

“I am too,” you assured him. “But, we both still understand that the relationship part of this isn’t real, right?”

“No, I know,” he said, shaking his head. “Which is why I wonder if we should avoid things like this.”

“There’s no problem with taking advantage of the situation while we’re in it.”

“So, you’re using me?” He asked.

“Aren’t we just using each other in the end?”

He looked at you curiously, his face still inches from yours. You reached up and caressed his cheek as you thought about how you could assure him that this was okay.

“All of this is a means to an end,” you continued. “You’re using me so that you can hold on to some dignity by not being separated from another wife so soon. I’m using you so that I can hold on to my job. We’re using each other to avoid embarrassment.”

“Maybe we should have just annulled it back then,” he replied.

“But we didn’t. Now, we’ve just got each other,” you reminded him. “Why not make the best of it?”

“What if all of this… the kissing, the living together, the closeness… what if it all just makes it too hard to end this when the time comes?”

“It won’t,” you said. “We’ll always remember that this whole thing should have never happened, right? Are we still on the same page about what we’re doing here?”

“You’re right,” he replied, as if he was trying to convince himself. “We know the plan, and we know that we just have to get through it. I guess… enjoying it despite all of that isn’t a bad idea I guess.”

“It’s okay that it feels sort of real sometimes,” you said, hoping to calm his worries if he was in fact into you like Kim had suggested. “It’s okay to enjoy things like this. Makes everything just a little less miserable.”

He leaned down toward you again, lips brushing yours and you tried to gauge his reaction to all of this. He seemed unsure, so you waited for him to decide. You wanted him take the lead.

He reached up and brushed his fingers along your face, making a movement as if he were considering kissing you again. He stopped himself, staring into your eyes briefly.

You just smiled at him, trying to ease his mind.

“It’s okay,” you said softly.

He dropped his mouth open as if to argue that it wasn’t okay. He stopped himself though, running his thumb along your lips as you waited for him to decide.

He chose not to say anything in the end. Instead, he gave in to what you knew you both wanted; some sort of affection and closeness with someone while the two of you internally worked through this mess.


	18. Part 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After returning home, Reader moves out immediately to avoid developing deeper feelings for Rob. She hesitantly attends their next session with him and Stephanie’s questions get more intense, forcing Reader to admit things that she isn’t ready to admit. Even worse, Rob seems to ignore every humiliating thing that she confesses to in the session.

**Reader's POV**

After returning from the convention, neither you nor Rob mentioned the nights spent making out and holding each other in the privacy of your hotel room.

Yes, you had continued with the affection publicly, but you reserved the almost intimate stuff for just yourselves.

Still, you never spoke of it; not since that first night. You both just let it happen. It was comfortable in a way, being with him like that. Although you were still a mess over the thoughts that you had about whether it was too much, you didn’t want to ruin the moments.

Knowing that you should probably distance yourself from him and the feelings that were building up inside of you, you made quick work of moving back into your own place. It was harder than you thought it would be. Just within the first couple of days being back at home and not with him every moment of every day, you felt painfully alone.

You wouldn’t tell him this of course. So, you pretended to be happy the morning that he called you to remind you of your appointment.

After acting as if you had completely forgotten about the session with your therapist, you agreed to meet him there anyway.

“Okay, this is a little different, but we’re going to do a rapid fire session,” she explained. “I’m just going to spout off questions and I want you to answer as quickly as you can. Don’t think too much about your answers, just say whatever pops into your minds.”

“Alright,” you agreed. “We can do that.”

“We’ll start with you, Y/N”

You nodded and prepared yourself. She asked a lot of basic questions about your childhood, your views on marriage, past relationships. She wasn’t lying when she called this a rapid fire session. You were dizzy trying to keep up with her. Still, you managed to get through the questions and felt a bit of relief when she focused on Rob and asked the same things.

You had assumed your part was done, but just as she finished with Rob, she turned back to you and asked a few more questions. You panicked and answered them the best you could. She did the same to Rob and you realized that this wasn’t ending any time soon.

Stephanie was spouting off questions quickly, you and Rob answering fast to keep up with her.

“Rob, what’s the one thing that you love most about your wife?”

“Uh- her smile.”

“Y/N, what do you love about your husband?”

“His eyes,” you said quickly.

“Rob, if you could change one thing about Y/N, what would that be?’

He looked at you, almost panicked as he felt rushed to answer.

“I don’t know, nothing.”

“You have to pick something,” Stephanie argued.

“Her nose.”

“My nose?” You said, offended by his answer.

“It’s actually a great nose, I just didn’t know what to say.”

“Okay, Y/N, what would you change about Rob?”

“I guess he could be a little taller…”

Rob scrunched up his face in response to your answer. You realized just then that you didn’t know how any of this was helpful. If anything, you were just hurting each other’s feelings.

“Rob, what was the specific moment that you felt that you were attracted to Y/N?”

“Um, the moment she was introduced to me. I immediately thought she was cute.”

“Y/N, how long have you been in love with Rob?”

“Probably since that night at the bar when he hit that guy who grabbed me,” you replied without thinking. “I kissed him that night and I think that was it for me.”

Everyone stayed silent. You hesitated, trying to figure out why there was a sudden pause in the rapid fire questions. That’s when it hit you. You realized what you had said.

“I didn’t mean that,” you choked out.

“You didn’t mean it when you said that you love your husband?”

“What? No!” You shouted, upset that you had been caught. “How could I? This was an accident. I don’t love him. I misunderstood the question!”

“You just admitted that you love him.”

“You tricked me!”

“Did I?” She asked.

Your mouth hung open in silent protest. You couldn’t even argue anymore. She had caught you; even worse, Rob had caught you.

“Let’s talk about that night,” she began. “That night at the bar. Tell me what happened that night.”

“I told you,” you replied sharply. “Some guy groped me, Rob defended me, and I kissed him.”

“Why did you kiss him? Did you feel it was necessary to do so as a thank you?”

“It was a practice kiss,” you replied. “I knew that eventually, we’d really have to make our relationship look real in public. I figured I should know what it would be like to kiss him first.”

“And that was the night that you chose to practice?’ She asked. “The night that he happened to step in and protect you?”

“I guess…”

“How long after that did the elevator incident happen?”

“You remember me mentioning that?” You frowned.

“That’s why I take notes,” she smiled.

“That happened the next night,” Rob said softly. He had been awfully quiet considering that you had basically just admitted out loud that you loved him. You assumed the shock of that had worn off now. “Although, she skipped the part where she kissed me on stage earlier that day.”

“At work?”

“Yeah, in front of the entire crowd. She just kissed me.”

Stephanie turned to you again, face turned up into an interested smile.

“So, this sounds like a lot of kissing happened.”

“For practice,” you reminded her.

“Okay, so timeline of that day… you kissed him onstage, at work-”

“For show!” You shouted, frustrated now.

“And then what happened in the elevator?”

“He was the one who kissed me,” you replied.

“You said he basically almost ‘fucked you in the elevator’,” she added as she glanced at her notes.

“Well, you did,” you mumbled when you caught Rob’s stare.

“Were people present for that?”

“What?” You cried out, disgusted by the thought of it. “No! What kind of girl do you think I am?”

“Did you stop him?”

You stared at the floor, trying to decide how to answer that.

“She didn’t,” Rob answered. “She just told me I couldn’t… have her… in an elevator.”

“But, you let him kiss you, even though no one was there to see? Would you say that it happened just for show that time?”

“Practice,” you replied.

“Tell me about what happened after that.”

“We went back to the room,” Rob began. “We kept kissing, we started to get undressed… it got sort of… intense.”

“And then you stopped it,” you added.

“I did,” he admitted.

“Why did you stop it?” Stephanie asked. “Because you don’t have any feelings for her? Or is there another reason?”

“I just- couldn’t do it.”

“I see,” she said, writing something down on her clipboard. “You stopped it because you really truly don’t like your wife. You’re not attracted to her. You don’t think of her that way.”

“You think I’m unattractive?” You asked as you turned toward him. You were genuinely hurt and he hadn’t even technically said anything.

“What? Don’t write that down,” Rob objected. “It’s not like that.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“Of course I’m attracted to her,” Rob exclaimed. “Look at her! She’s fucking beautiful.”

You blushed at his response, smiling slightly as he admitted it.

“Then why wouldn’t you sleep with her when she’s more than willing to sleep with you?”

“Because it would have meant something to me!” He said, exasperated.

“Why would it mean anything to you?” Stephanie pressed. “This isn’t a real marriage. This isn’t a real relationship. This was an accident between strangers. Why does it matter? Why is that particular event such a sore subject for both of you?”

Neither of you spoke for a long time. You stared off, letting her questions and Rob’s words sink in. This was far more complicated than you ever expected it to be.

She allowed the two of you to sit and think for a while. Finally, she broke the silence and the tension with another question.

“Has there been any other intimate moments between you since our first session?”

You decided not to bring up the nights you had spent with him. It’s not like you did anything serious on those nights, you had simply been there to help him relax. Surely that wasn’t viewed as something intimate.

You did however, consider telling her about that night in Nashville. You replayed it in your mind; the kiss, the desperation that you felt as you fell into bed together and the mess of emotions that washed over you when he touched you. It hadn’t been anything more than just touching, but it was still deeply intimate, even if you chose to treat it otherwise.

Before you could gather your thoughts and decide on how to bring it up though, Rob was already speaking.

“Well, there have been a few nights that we spent together,” Rob admitted.

You shot him a look, displeased with how he made it sound. Surely he wouldn’t bring up that night. Not without at least checking with you first.

“Oh?” Stephanie asked, leaning in as she seemed interested. “Can you elaborate on that?”

“N-nothing happened,” Rob stuttered out. “Not like that. It wasn’t ever anything… intimate.”

You breathed a little easier when you realized what he was talking about. Of course he had decided not to bring that night up. The two of you had been so thrown off by the whole thing, perhaps it wasn’t time to bring it up in therapy just yet.

“Then why would you bring it up when I ask a question about intimacy?”

“I don’t know…” he trailed off.

“What happened on those nights?”

“She just- okay, at our first session, you remember how she said that the thing that I did that annoyed her most was that I’m a terrible sleeper?”

“I remember.”

“Well, that night, after the session, she came into my room and she helped me fall asleep.”

“She- relieved you so that you could sleep?”

“Yeah.”

“And that’s not intimate?”

“Oh my god!” You shouted. “He doesn’t mean it like that. I just thought that maybe he would relax better if I played with his hair. It works for me, so I tried it with him. It worked, okay.”

“Oh, so it wasn’t anything sexual,” she said. “I mean, as long as you didn’t take it that way.”

“W-what?” Rob replied. “No! Not at all.”

“So, you’ve done this for him a few times?” She asked you.

“Yes.”

“Do you leave after he falls asleep?”

“Not exactly.”

“So you spend the night with him?”

“Yeah, but it’s not like we don’t do that on work weekends anyway,” you reasoned. “What’s the big deal?”

“It’s not a big deal,” she smiled. “I’m just asking questions about your relationship.”

“Okay,” you breathed out. “As long as you’re not judging me.”

“I’m not. I do have to ask, is it something you enjoy doing for him? Does it make you happy that you can help him sleep better?”

“W-well, yeah I guess so.” You were confused now. Why this discussion of you playing with Rob’s hair had turned into something so serious, you didn’t understand.

“You’ll continue to do that for him?”

“I guess I wouldn’t be opposed to it. He’s much happier when he gets decent sleep. But, I guess it doesn’t matter now because I’m not living at his place anymore.”

“Oh?”

“She moved out a couple of days ago,” Rob added.

“How does that make you feel, Rob?”

Rob paused, looking around the room uncomfortably. Very quickly, this entire session had turned into nothing more than the two of you feeling as if you were being called out on unimportant things.

“Uh, I guess it’s okay?”

“You sound unsure.”

“I mean, she stayed with me for weeks. It’s strange not having her there.”

“What about you, Y/N? What has it been like for you?”

“I’m fine. I like having my own place back. I like having privacy.”

“Do you miss your husband?”

“First of all,” you began as you leaned in toward her, “you say the word husband as if it actually means something here. It doesn’t. Secondly, I don’t miss him. I see him all the time. We just got back from a convention where we had to spend the entire weekend together.”

“Did you share a room?”

“Of course we did,” you replied. “If we asked for separate rooms from the organizers, people would talk.”

“How many times during the weekend did you help him sleep?”

“Okay,” you said through gritted teeth. “You are making that whole thing sound a lot more… sexual than it needs to sound.”

“I didn’t say it was sexual. Perhaps it is a bit intimate though; that closeness and level of comfort with someone.”

“It’s not intimate,” you insisted. “I was just tired of him not being able to sleep.”

“Tired of it even when you had your own room at his place and his insomnia didn’t affect you directly at all?”

“What are you trying to do here?” You asked angrily. Now, you were annoyed by her insistence. Even more, you were pissed off that she had tricked you into admitting certain things.

“I’m just trying to help,” she said sweetly. “I’m trying to understand how you can say that you love your husband, but deny that your interactions are intimate.”

“I don’t love him!” You shouted. “You tricked me into saying what I did. I didn’t understand the question, okay?”

“Rob also admitted that he didn’t want to sleep with you because it would mean something to him,” she pointed out.

You glared at Rob, noting the look of humiliation on his own face as he avoided your stare.

“What can we gather from that, Rob?”

“I- I don’t know…”

He certainly wasn’t very good at sticking up for himself.

“What do you think, Y/N? What does that mean when he says something like that?”

“I don’t know,” you said, exasperated now. “I guess that he only wants to be with someone that he has feelings for. Obviously that’s not me.”

“Oh, that’s not what I get from that statement at all,” Stephanie argued.

“Then why don’t you tell me?” You said. “You’re the professional here. Tell me what he meant.”

“I think he meant that he already has feelings for you,” she said calmly. “He’s afraid that being with you like that will only make those feeling stronger.”

She turned her attention to Rob who was still staring at the ground.

“Rob?” She asked, trying to get his attention.

“I- uh, I don’t know.”

“Well, maybe I just heard you wrong,” she replied as she leaned back in her chair.

The three of you took a moment to calm down. The room had become tense, your heart was racing. You didn’t know why you had gotten so worked up about all of this.

“Is there anything that either of you want to say to the other? This is still a safe space. You’re allowed to be vulnerable and open. There is no judgement here. I don’t judge you and I know that you don’t judge each other.”

You reconsidered saying something about that night, but you stopped yourself again. In fact, you also thought about bringing up last weekend’s make out sessions. You glanced over at Rob who looked as if he also had more to say.

The two of you were a lot more alike than you thought. You knew those events were eating at both of you, therapy would have been the perfect time to bring it up. But, you couldn’t. Talking about it in this setting would make it all real. Facing it would make you have to admit that you thought about it often. You weren’t ready to face those feelings yet.

You had a lot on your mind; questions that you needed answered, thoughts that you wanted to get off your chest. However, this was only the second session. Stephanie had tricked you into saying something that you didn’t feel you were ready to admit. There had been a lot that had been dragged out into the open today.

Unfortunately, you didn’t feel that you were ready to face all of that just yet. You knew you were stubborn, but that stubbornness was meant to protect you from getting hurt somehow.

“I have nothing to say,” you said flatly.

“Rob?” She asked, addressing him directly.

“I- um… there’s one more thing.”

“Go ahead,” she encouraged him. “Safe place.”

“So, over the weekend while we were working at a convention, other stuff might have happened.”

“Rob…” you sighed. “Please, don’t.”

“Let him talk,” Stephanie cut in.

“We might have kissed. A lot.”

“Can you elaborate on that?”

Rob glanced at you, almost as if he were looking for approval to continue. You rolled your eyes and shook your head, waving him off since he had already brought it up. You didn’t want to talk about it really, but you knew Stephanie would press you about it anyway.

“We just talked about what this was,” he continued. “We understand that this isn’t real, but we decided to take advantage of the situation.”

“Did you sleep with each other?”

“Not like that,” he replied. “We just kissed a lot.”

“Why?”

Rob shrugged, sort of confused on why there had to be a reason for it.

“Is kissing just something you both take lightly?” She asked. “It doesn’t mean anything?”

“It’s just kissing,” you cut in. “I don’t even know why he brought it up.”

“You seem upset,” she pointed out.

“I’m a little upset. Some things are private.”

“Is privacy an important thing when you’re in a fake marriage? I thought the whole point was to convince people that this was real.”

“Well, yeah,” you said. “But, I think that the things that happen in the privacy of our own space should probably stay private.”

“Sounds like you’re trying to protect your relationship.”

“There’s nothing to protect,” you replied. “You’re right, this is all for show.”

“So, why would you kiss each other privately? You can’t still be doing it for the sake of practice.”

You swallowed hard, knowing that you had been caught. Of course it meant so much more to you; but you couldn’t let anyone know that. You couldn’t admit right here that you cared for Rob more than you let on in public.

“I just- thought you should know about that is all,” Rob added. “I know it means nothing, but I thought it was important for the sake of therapy.”

“Why did it feel important to bring it up here?” Stephanie asked. “Why not just let it be between the two of you if it means nothing?”

“I don’t know-“ he stuttered, now looking like a deer caught in headlights.

You let out a laugh as you rolled your eyes at him. What he was trying to prove here, you weren’t sure, but he was adorably awkward as he did it.

“I think Rob thinks that everything should be out in the open here,” you said, coming to his defense. “I wasn’t going to bring it up, but he can’t help it when it comes to therapy. He thinks everything should be honest and out there.”

“You understand him well.”

“I try to,” you replied. “We’ve been together every day for the past few months, it’s hard not to get to know him well.”

“Tell me, how do you think Rob feels about the fact that you two shared some intimate moments like that?”

“It was hardly intimate,” you argued. “Just kissing. It was only because we realize we’re stuck in this marriage and after a while, it gets lonely.”

“So, you’re using him?”

“We’re using each other,” Rob blurted out.

“Explain.”

“We can’t go looking for… affection elsewhere like normal people can. Not if we want to keep up the act. So, we just find it with each other.”

“Is that all it is for you, Rob? You don’t think of it as anything more?”

“No,” he said bluntly. “Why would I?”

“I don’t know,” Stephanie mumbled. “Maybe because you just admitted that you didn’t want to be with your wife physically because you were afraid that you would fall more in love with her. There’s also the fact that she admitted her love for you.”

“Okay,” you said angrily. “That was a trick question and I didn’t mean to answer it that way.”

“Fine, if you’re still going with that excuse, I’ll accept it,” she smiled. “But, I was talking to Rob.”

“I never said that I was afraid of falling more in love with her,” Rob explained. “I just- stopped that because I felt that I would be taking advantage of her and the situation.”

“You don’t think that the fact that you make out is the same? You don’t think you’re taking advantage of her when you’re that affectionate?”

Rob looked at you quickly, silently asking if this could be true. He was a good man. Never would he want to take advantage of anyone in any situation. Now, you had to alleviate his obvious panic.

“He’s not taking advantage of me. I was okay with it.”

“Right,” Stephanie replied as she studied the two of you. “You’re taking advantage of each other.”

“Just the situation,” you replied.

“And you’re sure that it’s not because there’s something else there?”

“What do you mean?” Rob asked.

“I mean… you’re not engaging in a very intimate act with each other because it means something else? You’re certain that it’s ‘just for fun’?”

“Look, do we really need to go over all of this again?” You asked. “You understand our situation, right? That’s what we pay you for. You’re really going to let a discussion about a little kissing turn this entire thing into something more?”

“Well, I’m not the one who brought it up,” she smiled.

“Rob,” you sighed. “Why did you even mention it?”

“I’d like to know the answer to that as well,” Stephanie said as she leaned toward the two of you. She looked completely enthralled by the exchange.

“I don’t even know,” he mumbled. “I just thought that we talk about everything here.”

“So, we’re just going to pretend that this is still nothing?” She asked. “We’re going to ignore the things that you’ve shared here, and the fact that you are affectionate even when you’re not in public?”

“Yes,” you replied. “We’re going to ignore all of that because you tricked us into answering questions wrong, and none of it actually matters. We came here to learn to get along with each other so we could get through this; not to have you try to bring out some inner feelings that you think we’re keeping pent up.”

“I’m just doing my job,” she defended herself. “Even if it feels like I’m dredging up things that you’re too afraid to confront.”

“I’m not afraid,” you spat. “There are no pent up feelings.”

She focused on Rob, silently urging him to have a say in this as well.

“Yeah,” he said uncomfortably. “There aren’t any actual feelings here. We’re just… trying to get through this.”

“Alright,” Stephanie sighed, seemingly disappointed that the two of you hadn’t admitted your love for each other or whatever it was that she was expecting out of this. “I think we did well today. We definitely made progress. I’m going to ask that the two of you work on some things at home as well before we meet again.”

“No,” you said simply, “not again. There won’t be another time. I’m done with this. This is a waste of time.”

“Y/N…” Rob began in objection.

“No,” you said firmly, “you asked me to go to one session. I gave you that. I also decided to come to one more for you, just to be nice. I’m done with this. This is stupid.”

You stood up, angrily getting your things so you could rush out of there. You had done this in hopes that it would help you and Rob get along. Now, you were far more irritated with everything than you had been in a very long time.

“So, will you still consider taking some exercises home with you?” Stephanie asked. “I understand if you really don’t want to come back. This was a lot for one day. But, I still think you can both benefit from continuing to work on things at home.”

“No thank you,” you replied. “It’s not necessary, we don’t live together. There’s no point anymore.”

“Does Rob get a say in this?”

You looked at Rob, waiting for him to also agree that it wasn’t needed.

“Maybe she’s right…” he said quietly as he also stood up. “What’s the point really when we’re just faking this whole thing?”

“Okay,” she smiled. “If you think you don’t need to come back again, I can’t make you think otherwise.”

“Thank you,” you said a little more calmly. “It wasn’t all a complete waste of time.”

“You’re welcome. I just hope I helped a little bit.”

Rob gave her an awkward wave as he followed you to the door. You wanted out of there quickly, but mostly you wanted to run from everything that had been said here.

“One more thing,” she called out as you opened the door. “Can you at least think about what was discussed here? I mean, really think about it.”

“Oh, I’ve thought about it,” you replied.

“I hope that you will both think about what was shared here and talk about it with each other.”

“We’ve done enough talking,” you retorted.

“It’s doesn’t usually happen in the second session,” she said with a smile.

“What?” Rob asked.

“That the couples that I see are that open with each other. I know this was a very different situation than what I’m used to, but I really didn’t think I’d get you to admit your true feelings for each other that easily.”

You frowned at the way she seemed so sure of herself. It was as if she had just been the world’s greatest therapist in this moment. You still held onto the thought that she had definitely tricked you with that question, and that she had misunderstood what Rob had really meant with his statement.

There was no way that the two of you were actually in love with each other. The kissing was just kissing; something to pass the time and to hopefully help the two of you feel a little less lost in all of this. Neither of you were reading into it too much, she was the only one making it into a big deal.

“Well, you were spot on about most things,” you said as you stepped out the door. “You were wrong today though.”

You let the door shut behind you and Rob and you let out a deep breath now that you were away from Stephanie’s judginess. You didn’t know why you let someone who knew so little about this situation get to you the way that she did.

“You know that she tricked me with that question, right?” You asked as you and Rob walked out of the building.

“Yeah, I know,” he replied.

“And why did you have to bring up the making out?”

“I really don’t know,” he replied. “I guess… I am still trying to find a way to make sense of it.”

“I thought we agreed on what it was,” you said. You frowned at him, now upset that he seemed so upset. You never wanted to hurt him. But the way he seemed to be engaged in some inner battle at this moment made your chest ache.

“I know,” he smiled. “Forgive me if it’s too much sometimes.”

“Okay,” you said softly. The two of you had reached the parking lot and you stood at your car to look at him. “This is me backing off. I see now that it’s too much for you when we’re like that, so I’m stopping it now.”

“You don’t have to…”

“No, we have to. Neither of us should feel uncomfortable with this. If you’re still confused by it, then it’s too much. It needs to end.”

“Are you pushing me away again?” He asked. “I don’t want to go back to how we were before. It’s so much easier to do this when we get along.”

“I’m not pushing you away,” you replied. “But, I am backing off with the affectionate stuff. From now on, it’s reserved for public appearances only.”

He nodded, dropping his eyes from you so that he could stare at the ground. He looked as if he wanted to argue against your decision, but he looked back up at you and nodded again.

You knew then that it had been too much for him. You didn’t know if that meant that he was as into you as Kim had mentioned over the weekend, or if it just meant that he didn’t want you like that. Either way, the idea of having to avoid things like that sort of stung. You would be better off just admitting to him that you might be developing feelings for him, but how could you do that given the situation?

Stephanie was constantly pressing the two of you to be open with each other, to admit your feelings to each other. But, the one thing that she didn’t understand was that this was not a conventional relationship by any means. You were two people in a situation that should not have happened. You were constantly judged and berated by the people closest to you.

You were both lying to the world, and the fact that there was an agreed upon time limit to this thing was common knowledge between the two of you as well as among your closest friends. There was no way this could be anything more. Right now, you just wanted to avoid anyone who thought that it could be.


	19. Part 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob gives Reader a few days to cool off after that session. Fortunately, they are able to fall right back into the comfortable relationship that they had been developing. It all gets a lot more comfortable than even Rob anticipated though.

**Rob’s POV**

The next day, after they had left the session and each left for their own places, Rob was worried that what had been discussed there has been too much. Based on Y/N’s reactions, he couldn’t help but feel as if she was going to push him away yet again. Something that had seemed like such a good thing for them was suddenly the one thing that could easily set them back.

He hated the thought of it. Simple truths, or according to Y/N, trick questions; could not be the things that made her hate him again. He couldn’t allow that, not after everything they had been through.

He kept her words in his mind, the possibility that she had actually admitted that she loved him. No matter how confused he was by that, he also couldn’t let that damage things. 

He felt almost hopeful in a way. It was out there that he possibly had stronger feelings for her, and it was out there that she might have stronger feelings for him. Whether either of them could actually admit any of that in any other setting, he didn’t know; but, he was still determined to at least keep their relationship on the same steady course that it had been on prior to that session.

He gave it a few days before he called her. He didn’t want to push her too much, but he still really missed her. He assumed she was avoiding him for some good reason, but it didn’t sit well with him regardless.

He hesitantly called her, wanting nothing more than to keep their friendship going, if that’s all this was.

“Rob?” she said as she answered his call.

“Hey, Y/N,” he replied, suddenly nervous as he didn’t know how she was currently feeling.

“What’s up?” she asked brightly.

She seemed in a good mood, happy to hear from him at least. Perhaps that stupid session hadn’t completely ruined things.

“What are you up to tonight?” he asked.

“No plans,” she said casually. “Still kind of settling into my place.”

“Would you like some company?”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really. You know, I really miss having you around the house,” Rob said. “It’s been sorta lonely.”

“I miss being around,” you said honestly. “My place is pretty lonely too.”

“You know, just because you have your place and I have mine, and we’re not really married, doesn’t mean that we can’t hang out.”

“You really do miss me.” Rob could almost see her smile as she said it. Yeah, he really did miss her.

“I do,” he replied softly.

It was a lot to admit this to her, but he figured it was a good time to at least throw it out there now that they had been getting along so well.

Rich’s warning echoed in his mind still, the fact that it wasn’t smart to fall for her when this thing was destined to end.

“Well, come over tonight,” she said. “I’m just unpacking still, but maybe we can do another movie night.”

“Just the two of us?”

“Yeah, I actually enjoy hanging out with you.”

“We can order takeout.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll text you my address. I just realized you’ve never been over.”

* * *

When Rob found his way to her place, Y/N greeted him at the door. She seemed in a decent mood, smiling widely as she invited him in. She gave him a quick tour of her place before she asked him for help in the kitchen.

He joined her, helping to put away dishes.

“How do you like being back in your place?” Rob asked.

“It’s a relief,” she replied. “I bet you’re happy to have me out of your way.”

“I wouldn’t say that. I actually kinda miss you.”

“Aww, I miss you too,” she smiled as she put the last of her glasses in a cabinet. “But, we get to hang out tonight. Should I call for pizza?”

“Sounds good to me.”

They settled in her living room when food arrived. Y/N turned on a random movie, mostly for background noise as they ate, drank beer, and talked. She had only been out of his house for a few days and it already felt as if they had a lot to catch up on.

That was the moment that Rob knew for a fact that he was in too deep with her. A few days shouldn’t feel so long when he wasn’t with her.

“What have you been up to?” She asked as she took a drink of her beer.

“Nothing really. We just got back from the convention, and I saw you the other day. Haven’t had time for much else.”

“Yeah, about that last session,” she began. “We’re still okay, right?”

“Yeah, why wouldn’t we be?”

“I just- that was all really heavy, and we didn’t talk about it afterwards. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” he smiled in return. “Really, I understand that some stuff was said accidentally.”

“Okay,” she replied. “And you’re good with the fact that I never want to go back to therapy?”

Rob chuckled, amused that she was so adamantly avoiding it at all costs still.

“Yeah, I’m good with that. It wasn’t really for us. It helped a bit, but there’s no use in talking about about things with someone who treats this as a real marriage.”

“At least we understand what this is,” she said.

“Yeah, we kinda do.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean…” Rob trailed off, choosing his words carefully now. “What is this exactly? I have a basic idea, but maybe it’s better if you just tell me.”

“We’re two people who made a mistake,” she explained. “We’re also two people who, for some strange reason, actually enjoy being around each other.”

“Yeah,” Rob agreed. “I guess we’re doing okay considering.”

Without warning, Y/N set down her drink and leaned toward him. Before he could even think, she had her lips against his. He froze for a second. He could be wrong, but he was pretty sure that she had decided to avoid things like this. It had been her choice to stop with this sort of thing while they were alone together.

He considered mentioning it, but he decided against it as he returned the kiss. Perhaps one more time was okay.

They kissed for some time; Rob pulling her close to him, Y/N gripping onto his shirt to keep him close to her. How something that was supposed to be so innocent could feel so intense, Rob didn’t understand. Still, he let her take the lead, only choosing to get them both out of the confusing situation when she finally ended the kiss.

“I should go,” he said softly when she pulled away from him.

She grinned at him, almost as if she were in a daze after that kiss.

“You can stay.”

“I thought we weren’t doing this.”

“Me too,” she replied. “But, apparently we are. Please, stay.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, come on,” she said as she grabbed his hand and led him to her bedroom. “I don’t have a guest room, but the perks of being married are that you can sleep in my bed.”

“I’m really glad that it’s not weird, even if it should be.”

**Reader’s POV**

You knew that you shouldn’t encourage any more intimate interaction with Rob if you could avoid it. Hell, it had been your idea to back off completely.

Having him here with you again was comforting though. You didn’t understand why, but having him near you just made sense.

You had kissed him mostly to see if he was still okay with it. You told yourself that it shouldn’t happen, that this stuff behind closed doors was not normal when you were in a fake marriage and just trying to make it look real. There was no reason for any of this to happen other than the fact that you wanted it to happen.

He had surprisingly followed you to your bedroom and you felt the usual surge of excitement just knowing that he would be in your bed with you again. The fact that he was always there during work weekends was also comforting to you. It was when you returned home and each went back to your own beds when things started to feel off.

You decided that you could stick to the one thing that you had been using as an excuse to stay close to him, knowing that he wouldn’t argue with that.

This time, the little trick that you had used so often to help him relax and fall asleep wasn’t having the same effect as usual. You ran your hand through his hair, listening as he sighed and let out low moans. It was a bit much for you, and you felt yourself growing antsy just by the sounds that he probably didn’t realize he was making.

Maybe this is what your therapist had meant by this being such an intimate action between the two of you.

You stopped your movements when you couldn’t take it anymore.

“Why’d you stop?” Rob mumbled. He nuzzled into you more, causing your breath to hitch when you realized how turned on you were.

“Because- you keep making those noises…”

“What noises?”

“Noises like- like you’re really enjoying it.”

“I am enjoying it,” he said as he adjusted his body against yours.

Now he was pressed up against you on his side, his head turned so that was resting it dangerously close to your chest. He glanced up at you with those blue eyes and you stopped breathing for a moment.

You didn’t know what had come over you, but you wanted to press things further right now.

“How much were you enjoying it?” You said softly as you worked your hand through his curls again.

He closed his eyes and let out a sigh, a smile pulling up on his lips.

“A lot,” he mumbled.

“This is kind of intimate, isn’t it?”

“I guess so,” he replied as he pressed his face against your chest.

Without really giving it a second thought, you stopped what you were doing again and adjusted your own body so that you could scoot down next to him until your faces were aligned with each other. He gave you a curious look and you smiled at him as you brought your hand to his face, taking care to run your fingertips along his jawline, stopping at the white spot of his beard. For some reason, it always drove you a little crazy.

“What?” He asked when you didn’t say anything else.

“Nothing,” you whispered. “This is nice.”

“Yeah,” he smiled. “It is.”

Carefully, as you attempted to ease him into it to make sure it was okay, you led him closer to you. You stopped just shy of his lips, trying to gauge how he felt about this.

It was just a kiss, right? The two of you had been doing this for a while now. Only this time, you knew deep down that it wasn’t just kissing. You desperately wanted more, and judging by the heaviness of the moment, you thought he felt the same way.

He didn’t stop you or pull back, so you pressed your lips to his softly at first.

You felt him sigh against your mouth and you parted your lips for him, letting him know that it was okay for him to really kiss you if he wanted to. He read your cues easily and dipped his tongue into your mouth.

The kiss was gentle and slow at first, neither of you pulling back at any point. It was then that you realized that this was okay. You had no problem with kissing him still. Despite your complicated situation, this felt nice. There was no anxiety over it, no doubts that maybe you were pushing too much, no hesitation at all.

Wondering how far you could really take this, you tested him. You ran your hand down his neck and chest, stopping only to tug at the hem of his T-shirt. What he would do, you had no idea, but you hoped that he would oblige with the fact that you were okay with things going farther.

Almost as if on instinct, he broke away from the kiss and sat up, immediately discarding his shirt. He leaned over you, reaching for your own shirt where he stopped and lifted it slightly so that he could run his fingers against the bare skin of your stomach. He glanced up at you as your breath caught, asking for permission with nothing but a look. You nodded and sat up, allowing him to pull your shirt up and over your body. He tossed it to the floor next to his and moved back in for another kiss.

You allowed him this, leaning back against the bed as he topped you, his lips never leaving yours.

You let him settle between your legs and you felt the heat pool within you. You slowly gripped onto his hips and gave him a quick tug against your body as you bucked your hips against him at the same time.

You both broke the kiss again, each of you letting out low moans at how good that felt. You wanted the both of you to be undressed completely now. It hadn’t been the first time you had thought about being with him like this, but it felt almost wrong to realize that you wanted him inside of you right now.

“Rob,” you whispered as you writhed against him. You closed your eyes and pressed your head back against the pillow as he began to grind against you. You could feel his erection against you and you suddenly felt desperate as you reached for his boxers, tugging at them.

He maneuvered himself quickly so that he could undress completely, leaning back down so that he could crash his lips against yours again. The gentle kissing that you had started with had become heated as he bit at your lip, causing a much louder moan to escape you.

You reached for your shorts, attempting to pull them down as he worked feverishly at your mouth. When he realized what you were doing, he sat up again, helping you to rid yourself of your clothes as well. You removed your bra as he did this, each of you tossing the clothes carelessly aside.

You laid back down, waiting for him, and he took a moment to look at you. His eyes took you in, staring at you almost hungrily. Whatever that look was, you enjoyed it. He looked at you as if you were the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

“Rob, please,” you said again as you reached for him, pulling him back to you.

He resumed his place on top of you as you parted your legs for him. The feeling of his bare skin against yours was exhilarating and you moved against him, eager for this to happen.

“Are you sure?” He asked suddenly as he took a moment to break away from your lips.

Your heart dropped at his words and the way he looked at you now. Fearful that this was going to be a repeat of the last time things got heated, you moved so that you could hold his head in your hands, forcing him to look right at you.

“Are you going to talk yourself out of this again?” You asked.

He shook his head in response, “No, but I still need to know that this is what you want.”

“If I didn’t want this, it wouldn’t be happening.”

Nothing else needed to be said. He crashed his lips against yours again, positioning himself between your thighs. He pulled back from the kiss, stopping to look you in the eyes as he slowly entered you.

Your mouth dropped open in a silent moan as he did so, overcome by the way he felt inside of you. He took his time, easing himself into you at an excruciatingly slow pace. You locked eyes again as he bottomed out, his own mouth dropping open as he too took in the pleasure.

This time, he kissed you a bit more softly, taking his time as you adjusted to his size. Soon, you didn’t want to wait any more, so you bucked against him again, moaning as you did so.

He took his cue and pulled out slowly before easing his way back in. After a moment, he began to thrust into you, building up to a steady pace.

You wrapped your arms around him, gripping onto him as you moaned and gasped with each slow thrust.

After some time of slow lovemaking, you began to feel yourself on edge. You grasped onto him tightly as you urged him to give you more.

“Fuck, Rob,” you gasped, “yes…”

He picked up his pace just then, slamming into you relentlessly with each thrust against you. You moaned, digging your fingertips into his skin, fire building within you and you realized you were close.

He must have known, because he kept his pace, watching you as he moved against you. He suddenly shifted his hips, hitting you in just the right spot. You cried out as your climax peaked, gasping and moaning, gripping onto him as he rode you through your orgasm. Just as you began to come down, he grunted against your neck, his hips stuttering as he came.

He collapsed on top of you, stilling his movements as the two of you came down together.

You were overcome with affection for him in that moment; the way his body felt against yours, the comforting feeling of his hot breath against your neck, the feeling of still having him inside of you. You held onto him, not wanting him to move.

“Should we have done that?” He asked, nearly breathless as he leaned up and looked into your eyes.

“Can’t argue with great sex,” you grinned. “Please, don’t make this any more complicated than it already is.”

“You’re right,” he replied. “That was pretty great.”

He shut up, realizing that he really shouldn’t question anything too much anymore. He laid down and rested his head against your chest, letting his hand caress your sweat drenched skin. Both of you took a moment to steady your breathing, just basking in the moment.

“I like you, Rob,” you said softly. You reached a hand up to run your fingers through his hair, causing him to shiver against your touch. Saying those words made you anxious. You were never supposed to admit this to him. They weren’t the exact words that you wanted to use in this moment, but just the knowledge of what you really meant was enough to scare you.

“I like you too,” he replied.

He pulled out and moved off of you, eliciting a whine from you now that you had lost that closeness with him. Almost as if he understood, he immediately wrapped his arms around you and pulled you against him. He kissed along your shoulder as you calmed yourself and you sighed happily in the aftermath of great sex.

You sort of wished it hadn’t been so good. You had hoped that he would have disappointed you somehow so that you could go back to not really liking him. The fact that you wanted to not like him confused you. On one hand, you adored the man; even if you were spending so much time trying to convince yourself otherwise. On the other hand, you often wondered what would happen if you were completely honest with him. Not just a little ‘I like you’ statement, but a declaration of how you truly felt about him.

“Should we talk about this?” He asked.

You let out a frustrated sigh, knowing that he was probably just as confused as you were, but also knowing that you really didn’t want to talk about it.

“Can we just- not talk about anything right now?” You asked.

He looked at you again, probably taking a hint from the irritation in your voice. He nodded his understanding and you nudged him, encouraging him to lay back down.

You didn’t want to talk about it, even though you knew you should. You wanted to have this moment just as what it was right now; no complications, no talking, no regrets.

You understood that the two of you had just complicated things beyond imagination. Yes, you knew you actually liked each other; but nothing good could possibly come from liking someone that you accidentally married. In a few short months, this would be over. You would divorce officially, just as you had both promised you would. How could this thing between the two of you ever be anything more once this was finished? Soon, you’d have an ex-husband and he’d have another ex-wife, and the two of you would be done with each other.

This entire thing had been an accident; everything leading up to this had been one mistake after another.

Why couldn’t you just control your feelings? Why did it have to be him? For the second time in this ‘relationship,’ you started to regret your actions again.

“You okay?” He asked when he noticed that you were lost in thought.

“I’m okay,” you replied.

You allowed yourself tonight to at least feel this strange sense of companionship with him. You cuddled against his body, enjoying the warmth and protectiveness you felt with him. He traced his fingertips against your neck and leaned in for another kiss, which you willingly accepted.

He wrapped his arms around you, holding you close as the two of you relaxed and waited for sleep to come.

This wasn’t normal, nothing about any of this was normal. And while you assumed that nothing good could come from allowing the two of you to become intimate with one another, you decided that you wouldn’t worry about it for now. You wanted to wait for another day to face the consequences.


	20. Part 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader begins to push Rob away again. Rob is tired of denying that he has feelings for her, but he can’t get her to speak to him. Desperate, he schedules another counseling session and Reader hesitantly attends. Feelings are expressed, fears are addressed, and the two are left with what they need to try to work things out. Little do they know, both of them are keeping things from the other; things that neither of them are willing to bring up just yet.

**Reader’s POV**

You had panicked the morning after, you admitted that to yourself. Quite obviously too. Instead of enjoying the moment of just being with him like you wanted to, you quickly made up an excuse to make Rob leave.

He had been confused as you rushed him out your door, stopping to ask you when he could see you again.

Your heart nearly broke when he did ask. Of course he was now going to expect this to be a regular thing. You had made yet another huge mistake and he was certainly going to take advantage of that.

You explained that you would be very busy for the next few weeks, but that you would call him even though you had no intention of doing so. 

Once he was gone, you had spent that day going over everything in your head. You couldn’t comprehend how you had let things go this far. You wanted him, yes. But you also knew that this relationship wasn’t real. Sleeping with him had only cemented your feelings for him, feelings that you weren’t ready to admit.

Despite the words of your therapist and your friends, you knew that you had allowed this to mean more than he did. There was no way that he felt the same way.

You spent the following weeks avoiding him. You stayed to yourself at home, not answering his calls or his texts. You wanted to pretend that none of it had ever happened.

You figured that the easiest way to get through the last couple months of this would be to completely ignore him if you could.

Luckily, you hadn’t completely lied about being busy. You had been scheduled to return to the set in Vancouver the week after your little tryst. You had sent him a brief text right before you left, telling him that you were heading back for work and it was probably best if he just left you alone so you could focus on work.

He took the hint at least. You didn’t hear from him again during the entire three weeks you were in Vancouver.

Things were definitely not how you wanted them to be. You only had yourself to blame for that. Now, you had gone weeks without really having any contact with him, and the thought of it hurt. You knew you were in too deep with him.

When you returned home after your time on set, you still didn’t attempt any form of contact. You had briefly considered calling him on one particular day. You had just received some news not long after you got home, news that would change your life completely. You wanted to be able to talk to him, you wanted for things to go back to normal. But you knew that you had complicated things. In fact, what was currently going on in your life was beyond complicated.

You wished that you could go to Rob about what was bothering you, but even you understood that too many lines had been crossed for that to be an option.

While you had spent yet another day wondering if you should call him, you were pleasantly surprised when your phone rang in your hand. You smiled slightly when you saw Rob’s name pop up, chuckling to yourself at the fact that you had just literally been thinking about him. You had also spent a good amount of time ignoring him, but right now, you wanted to hear his voice. You figured you could let go of your confusion and frustration over what had happened and what was currently happening.

Also, you had already been considering ways that the two of you could let this whole thing go. You had a plan for the entirety of your fake marriage, perhaps it was okay to have a plan for how to end it. Given current circumstances, you felt as if you didn’t really want to do that, but you also knew that he would.

**Rob’s POV**

“Y/N, can we please just talk about this?” Rob said bluntly when you answered the phone.

“Hello to you too,” you replied.

“Hi,” he said quickly, fearful that she would hang up on him before he had a chance to speak. “Look, you’ve been avoiding me, and I want to talk about this.”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” you sighed. “What happened, happened. We can’t take any of it back, but we can move on from it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, we have a couple of months left in this marriage… maybe it’s time that everything starts to fall apart.”

Rob felt an ache in his chest as she said the words. The words that he never wanted to hear. It was bound to happen eventually. This entire thing was meant to end soon, he understood that. But, he didn’t want it to end this way. He didn’t want it to end at all.

“You’re serious?” He asked.

“Rob, this was always going to end,” she replied. “After the mistakes that we made, maybe now is a good time to just let it be obvious that the marriage is ending.”

“Even after we slept together?” He asked quietly. He had hoped to keep the thought to himself, but it slipped out. It had been bothering him for some time, especially since she had immediately cut off contact with him after it had happened.

He didn’t mean for that one action to mean anything to him, but it did. He cared about her a great deal, and maybe he was crazy, but he didn’t want to lose her now.

“Rob…” she sighed. “That was just…”

She trailed off, probably trying to think of a way to let him down gently.

“That shouldn’t have happened either,” she said finally.

“One more session,” he blurted out.

“Excuse me?”

“Give me this,” he argued. “Come with me to one more session.”

“What’s the point? This is close to being over. Why can’t we just let it go?”

“Maybe she can help us figure out how to do that.”

“Really? You think our therapist is going to help us figure out how to end our fake marriage?”

“At least so it seems real to everyone else.”

“It is real, Rob,” she sighed. “It is really ending.”

“I know it is,” he replied. “But I want to do it so that I don’t completely lose you.”

“You’re not-“

“I am though. You haven’t talked to me in weeks. You’re avoiding me and ignoring me, and I just want to keep you as a friend at least.”

Y/N stayed quiet for a moment as she considered his offer. He really needed for her to accept. This entire situation had fucked him up, and the fact that they had slept together and actually remembered it had just made things worse.

The two of them weren’t great at being completely honest with each other. However, those therapy sessions helped immensely. They were more open and honest during those times than they ever were in their real lives.

“Fine,” she said finally. “Only because I don’t want to lose you as a friend either.”

“Thank you,” he breathed out, trying not to sound desperate. He had a lot that he needed to say to her, and he figured this was the only way that he could do that.

“I swear,” she began, “if she tries to trick me into saying something that I don’t want to say again, I’m gone.”

**Reader’s POV**

“How have things been since our last session?” Stephanie asked as she took her usual seat across from you and Rob. She clicked her pen and rested it against her clipboard, ready to take notes on how fucked up the two of you were.

“Fine,” you blurted out. “We’re fine.”

“Really? Because I thought you had decided not to come to the sessions anymore.”

“Well,” you mumbled, “he asked me to come to one more…”

“You’d do anything for him, wouldn’t you?”

You squinted at her, trying to figure out what she was getting at right now.

“Not anything,” you replied.

“Well, I’m glad you’re here,” she smiled. “There’s still a lot for the two of you to work through.”

“Look, we came here for help with how to end this,” you said. “I’m not looking for couples counseling anymore. I’m here so that Rob and I can ease our way into a divorce without being assholes to each other.”

“Is that what you still want? A divorce?”

“Of course it is,” you answered. “That’s always been the plan.”

“Even after everything?”

“What do you mean?” You faced Rob, giving him a confused look and waiting for him to add to this. “That’s the plan, right?”

“Rob, have you talked to Y/N about what we talked about?”

You whipped your head back to face Stephanie.

“You talked? When?”

“I’ve had a couple of sessions with her on my own,” Rob admitted.

“Why?” You asked, looking back at him.

“I had some stuff to work out.”

“Did you talk about me?”

“We talked a lot about you,” Stephanie confirmed.

“Well, I think this is a great time to tell me what you talked about then.”

“Rob,” Stephanie began, encouraging him to speak up.

Rob let out a sigh, staring up at the ceiling as he tried to decide how to approach this.

“I had to talk to someone about that night… the night that we were together.”

“So you talked about the fact that we had sex to our therapist without me?”

“You wouldn’t talk about it!” He shouted.

You flinched at his sudden anger, and he visibly tried to calm himself.

“You avoided the topic,” he continued calmly now. “You avoided me.”

“I thought we decided that we wouldn’t talk about it.”

“No, you decided that. I wanted to.”

“So you came to her?”

“Regardless of what you think, she helps.”

“Okay, fine. What exactly did you talk about?”

“We discussed the way that you encouraged it,” Stephanie said. “We discussed how hurt he was when you wanted to pretend that nothing happened. He had a lot of concerns over the way you handled it.”

“This is humiliating,” you replied, feeling tears well up. “I can’t believe you talked to her about this. I can’t believe you convinced me to come back here. For what? What is the point of this?”

“So that the two of you can confront your feelings for each other,” Stephanie answered. She turned to Rob then. “This is your chance.”

Rob swallowed hard before making eye contact with you. When he did so, you felt your heart race. You hated that he made you feel this way.

“You wouldn’t talk to me otherwise,” he said softly.

You shook your head at him, slightly pissed that he had brought you here for whatever this was.

“This… this is not an act anymore,” he began. “Everything that our friends have said to you, it’s all true. I got in too deep, and I shouldn’t have.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not going to jump in and say that I’m in love with you,” he replied. “But you have to know that I am falling for you. I have fallen for you.”

“I don’t understand…”

“Everything. The kissing, the sex… it all means something to me, and I’m sorry.”

You stayed quiet for some time, trying to let his words make sense in your head.

“Do you have a response to this, Y/N?” Stephanie cut in. “Is there anything that you want to say to Rob?”

“No,” you said flatly. “This is crazy. Rob, you can’t mean that.”

“I do, Y/N,” he replied. “I’ve been avoiding it for a long time, but I have to be honest with you.”

“You’re out of your mind,” you said as tears welled up in your eyes. “You are not in love with me. This…. this is not a real relationship.”

“Rob and I have discussed this a lot,” Stephanie cut in when she noticed how upset you were getting. “He’s being honest with you, and you need to be honest with him.”

“What do you want me to say?” You choked out.

“Just tell him how you feel about him.”

You stayed quiet as you studied her. Surely this was some sort of trick. You had gone on a long time thinking that this thing between you and Rob was nothing but an act. Yes, you had initiated a lot of the things that shouldn’t have happened, but you knew that none of that really meant anything to him. It couldn’t.

You turned to face Rob then, pleading with him to not be lying to you right now.

“Rob, please tell me that she’s crazy. You don’t mean any of that.”

“I do though,” he breathed out as he took your hand in his. “I’ve been denying it for too long. It’s been killing me.”

“I don’t- I don’t know what to say,” you stuttered.

“Just tell me if I’m wasting my time with trying to make this work between us.”

He looked at you sadly, almost as if he didn’t really want you to tell him that at all.

“I can’t say that,” you replied.

“Why not?” Stephanie added. “If you don’t love him, why can’t you just tell him that?”

You looked back at her, sort of pissed that she would even say it like that.

“How can we be in love?” You asked sharply. “This wasn’t supposed to happen. We cannot build a relationship out of a mistake like this.”

“Are you trying to convince me of that?” Stephanie asked. “Or are you trying to convince him?”

“I’m not- trying to convince anyone of anything…”

“You’re trying to convince yourself,” she stated. “If you keep telling yourself all of that, then it has to be true, right?”

You eyed her, still pissed off that she was calling you out like this. Of course you repeated these exact words to yourself every day. Of course you had been trying to convince yourself that you didn’t love him, not when things were so complicated. You hated that she could read you like a book. You also hated that you couldn’t argue with her any more.

“Okay!” You shouted. “Fine!

You turned quickly to face Rob again, your face hot with frustration.

“I like you okay?” You finally admitted. “I love you… or I’m falling in love with you and I’m trying my damnedest not to.”

“Why are you trying to avoid it, Y/N?” Stephanie asked.

You continued to look at Rob, not breaking eye contact as you answered the question.

“Because it scares me. The feelings that I have for you scare me because this was never supposed to happen.”

“Is that the only reason why?”

“It’s because I know that you’re in this just because you don’t want anyone to know what we did. I can’t be in love with you because in a few months, this will be over and you’ll go on pretending that I don’t exist.”

“How can you think that?” Rob breathed out. “Y/N, you have to know that I’ve already fallen for you. That’s why this has been so damn hard. I’m here, thinking that when the time is up, you’re the one who will go on with her life, pretending that I never happened.”

“I just- I wish we never made the mistake that we did,” you began, letting tears fall down her face as they both came clean about how they felt. “We could have really fallen in love. We could have had something real if we hadn’t been so stupid.”

“Do you think that your mistake is really holding the two of you back from having something real?” Stephanie asked.

“Of course it is,” you replied sharply. “How can we have anything real when we’re so busy trying to make people believe that we didn’t make a mistake.”

“Maybe you don’t have to force yourselves into trying to make people believe that you care about each other,” Stephanie replied. “Yes, the marriage part of it isn’t real. But, that doesn’t mean that the feelings you have for each other can’t be real.”

You and Rob stared at each other again, both of you taking in the fact that you could possibly have feelings for each other even though the marriage part of this wasn’t real. For so long, you had convinced yourself that it wasn’t possible; but here you were. You could have him if you wanted him, and you could be open about your feelings despite everything. Why it took a therapy session for you to understand that was beyond you.

“You can make this work,” she said softly.

“How?” You asked. “Where do we even go from here?”

“I’d like to suggest that you try dating each other.”

“I think we’re far past the dating thing.”

“Yes, but you should give it a try. You both know that you have feelings for each other. You should explore those feelings the way any couple would. Date each other, really get to know each other, act as if you didn’t get married on a whim. See if you would still really have these feelings for each other despite your situation.”

“Then what?” Rob asked. “We’ve acknowledged that we love each other, but we’re still in this mess?”

“Then I’d suggest moving back in with each other,” she smiled. “That’s when things were the best for both of you, right?”

“She’s not wrong,” Rob said as he looked at you.

“Then, maybe it’s not a bad idea to just be together the way that was most comfortable for both of you, then let the marriage play out of you can.”

“Stay married?” He asked.

“If you decide that’s what you want.”

“Backwards dating,” you chuckled.

“Excuse me?”

“We sort of talked about this after we got married. Backwards dating. Be married and then date to see if we liked each other enough to make it work.”

“You didn’t do that?”

“Other stuff kinda got in the way,” you smiled. “But, that’s what this would be anyway, right?”

“Yeah, I think it’s accurate. Date now even though you’re already married; and just see what happens. Maybe there won’t be a need for a divorce at all.”

“It was still an accident,” you pointed out. “No matter how we feel about each other, it never should have happened.”

“You’re not wrong. But some accidents are not always truly accidents.”

“You think this happened for a reason?”

Stephanie shrugged, letting out a laugh as she considered this.

“Some things just happen for a reason, even if those reasons seem insane.”

You held your breath at her statement. You considered saying something else. Something that had been on your mind for a while now. It was another accident that the two of you had gotten yourselves into, only this time, you were the only one who knew about it.

“Is there anything else that you want to share with each other?” she asked. She focused mostly on Rob, who looked a bit uncomfortable by her question.

“I’m good,” Rob said simply.

She looked at you next and you felt your heart race. You opened your mouth to speak, unable to form the words that you wanted to really say. You had almost forgotten that you had something important to tell him. Now wasn’t the time though. You recoiled, realizing that it wasn’t something that needed to be shared right now, not like this.

“No,” you answered.

“So, you’re both acknowledging that there is something real here between the two of you?” Stephanie asked again. “You admit to each other that you care for each other, despite the mistakes and accidents?”

“Yes,” Rob replied as he turned to smile at you.

You nodded in agreement, smiling back at him.

“This won’t work unless you’re honest with each other from here on out,” she added, again looking at Rob. You caught on to the way he became uncomfortable again and you wondered what that was all about. Your curiosity faded when she looked at you and you suddenly felt guilty for the the things you were keeping from him.

“But, you still have time to work through those things,” she finished.

You let out the breath that you had been holding in, relieved now that you understood that it wasn’t necessary to be completely honest about everything right away. You had time. You believed that the two of you really could make this work; as long as Rob was onboard for whatever else it was that life threw at the two of you.


	21. Part 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that they have been honest about their feelings for each other, Reader and Rob are just trying to navigate their new relationship the best they can. They are still keeping secrets from each other, and one of those secrets is about to be noticed.

**Reader’s POV**

After the session, you decided to go with Rob back to his place. You had been away from each other for weeks, and quite frankly, there was a lot to talk about still. Mostly, you just missed him.

You had every intention of bringing up the thing that you wanted to discuss with him, but you barely had a moment to breathe as he pulled you into the house and immediately pressed you against the wall.

He kissed you hard. As if he had been starved for it. In a way, he had been; and so had you. You kissed him back as you suddenly began to work at removing his shirt. It was just a normal reaction for you. 

“I love you,” you murmured in between kisses. “I love you and it’s so fucking scary to say it, but it’s true.”

“I love you too,” Rob replied. “I know I said I wouldn’t say that, but I mean it. I’m just as freaked out by this as you are.”

“Are we really doing this?” you asked. “Everything that you said, was it true?”

“Yes, it’s true,” he replied. “I know it’s crazy, and this entire thing is a mess; but I meant it all.”

“Okay, but you have to promise me that you’re in this for real. One hundred percent. Because I’m scared, and I can’t handle being lied to.”

“I would never lie to you,” he promised.

He crashed his lips against yours desperately, almost as if he were afraid that you’d change your mind any second.

You wanted to ease his mind, and you wanted to hear him say that he meant everything he had said. The two of you had spent far too much time denying your feelings in an attempt to save face. Somehow, you had managed to fall into this marriage, trying to convince people that you were in love; all while actually being in love but denying it to the people closest to you. You had both made a mess of things, and the impending reality of the set date of your divorce was still nagging at you. You hadn’t addressed that yet, and you certainly hadn’t talked about how to handle it now that you had both admitted your feelings for each other.

There was something else more important that was also bothering you, and you knew you had to tell him.

“Rob,” you whispered as he pressed his body against yours. He groaned against your mouth, letting his hands wander until he gripped onto your hips.

“I need to tell you something,” you breathed out as he focused his lips against your neck.

“Can it wait?” he asked as he pulled back to look at you. “I want you right now. We can talk about it later?”

You considered this, even if you knew it was something important. The fact that you wanted him just as badly right now won though.

“Okay,” you said, nodding your agreement, allowing him to continue with what he had been doing.

This time, the two of you made love for real. Neither of you denied each other’s feelings anymore, and more importantly, you allowed yourselves to feel your own feelings for one another.

**Rob’s POV**

He had noticed the way she had held back during their therapy session when Stephanie touched on specific things. He had been so busy trying to hide the things that he knew he should say though, so he didn’t bother bringing it up.

The night after the session, she had been very set on telling him something, possibly the thing she had avoided during the session. He had stupidly convinced her not to bring it up yet though, and the next morning, she was avoiding it completely.

He had asked what it was that she wanted to tell him, but she insisted that maybe wasn’t that important.

“It’s nothing,” she replied as they sat together at the table, having breakfast.

“It sounded important,” he argued. “We can talk about it now.”

She smiled at him and reached over to brush her hand against his cheek.

“Really, it’s nothing. Let’s just enjoy the day.”

“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?”

“I know,” she laughed, shaking her head at his insistence. “Trust me, it’s fine. It doesn’t matter right now.”

He nodded his understanding, not wanting to push her into talking about whatever it was if she didn’t want to just yet. Perhaps it was selfish really. Because there was one thing that he needed to tell her that he didn’t know if he was ready to put out there just yet either.

He was certain that it wouldn’t completely destroy what they had, not after they had finally come to terms with their feelings for each other. But, it was something pretty big. In truth, he had no idea how she would even react to it. So maybe it wasn’t a bad idea for the two of them to just go on for a while longer holding back on some things.

Things were good for the rest of the week at least. Ever since they had decided to be completely honest with each other about their feelings, they seemed to be better than ever. They spent a lot of time together, just talking and making decisions together on where this relationship would go.

Rob had almost completely forgotten about Y/N’s strange behavior and the way that she seemed to be avoiding something. For now, he wanted nothing more than to focus on their developing relationship.

**Friday**

When they left home for yet another convention, the only worry on Rob’s mind was how they were going to deal with how their friends would react when they found out that they were actually serious about this.

That opportunity to find out had arrived sooner than he expected when they were instantly reminded of the stupid bet that everyone had going on concerning the time in which their marriage would last.

“So, you two have roughly a month or so left for this marriage, right?” Briana asked suddenly.

“Uh, yeah, why?” Rob asked.

“Just checking,” she beamed. “I’ve got money riding on the fact that I think you’ll make it all the way to the end.”

“Thanks? I think…”

“You really haven’t dropped the bet?” Y/N sighed as she eyed Stephen.

“Nope,” he grinned. “Almost everyone has lost. It’s mostly between Briana, Mike, and Jared now. They both think very highly of your marriage.”

“What happens if we make it past the set date?” Y/N asked.

Rob turned to her, wondering if she had meant to say that out loud.

Stephen gave her a confused look, leaning toward her as if to challenge her.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean,what will happen if we stick it out for a little longer than what we decided on?”

“Why would you do that?” Briana cut in. “You had a deal.”

“I’m just wondering why Rob and I haven’t gotten in on this. It is our marriage after all. Maybe it’s time we joined in.”

“That wouldn’t be fair,” Stephen pointed out. “You both had a set date, there’s no going back on that.”

“You wouldn’t be that stupid,” Briana added. “You’re both so desperate to get out of this, don’t even joke.”

“We are?” She asked, looking puzzled.

“What’s going on?” Briana asked slowly. She glared at the two of them as if she knew something was up, but she just wasn’t sure what it was.

“Y/N,” Rob scolded as he put his arm around her. He very suddenly caught on to the fact that Y/N was no longer planning to be inconspicuous about this. She obviously thought it would be more fun to mess with them instead. “You shouldn’t tease our friends.”

Rob gave her a pleased look and she leaned in to him, placing a firm kiss to his lips. He really enjoyed that you could be open about kissing now, even if the people around them might still think it was an act.

“You know, I’d like to know what’s going on as well,” Rich cut in as he stepped toward them. “I’ve seen the two of you be grossly affectionate, but I have to say, I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen you kiss like that.”

“Relax,” Rob chuckled. “Y/N and I actually like each other.”

“Yes, we’ve established that,” Rich said. “Well, you actually denied that you had feelings for her, but we understood that you were at least getting along.”

“Rob and I have recently confronted the fact that we have feelings for each other,” Y/N added.

Rob felt himself grin like an idiot as she spoke.

“Really?” Rich asked, looking confused.

“What can I say?” Rob smirked. “Your therapy suggestion worked a lot better than expected.”

“Really?” He said again. “You had a few sessions and now what? You’re in love with each other?”

“Well, I think- no, I know that there was always something more there,” Rob explained as he looked at Y/N lovingly. “We just… never admitted to it because of the situation.”

“So… what is this?” Rich asked, looking confused. “Are you saying you’re an actual couple now?”

“Yeah,” Rob replied with a smile. “We are.”

“Am I the only one who remembers that you accidentally got married?” He argued. “How does this happen?”

“Well, you did warn me that I’d fall for her,” Rob laughed. “You were right.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think she’d be dumb enough to fall for you.”

“Hey!” Rob exclaimed, looking hurt by his friends words. “I’m a great husband.”

“The best,” Y/N confirmed with a smile.

It hadn’t required a lot of explanation to convince everyone that the two of you were serious. In fact, most of them apparently knew that both of you would come to your senses sooner rather than later.

“See!” Billy shouted at Rob. “I told you that you should get to know your wife. I so didn’t want to see the two of you fail.”

“I’m not even surprised,” Briana had explained. “The two of you spent more time avoiding the fact that you loved each other than you actually spent trying to convince people that you did.”

“I still don’t understand how you talked her into this,” Rich had said.

Not that it mattered to either of them what their opinions were, but they had both relaxed just knowing that it was out in the open and everyone seemed okay with it. Any anxiety that either of them felt over that part of the weekend had disappeared. 

**Reader’s POV**

Later that day, you were patiently waiting backstage for your panel to start. You listened to Rob and Rich’s banter, mostly thinking about other things. You had a lot on your mind and you only hoped that you could forget about it all for a just a bit while you got through this panel.

“Are you okay?”

You jumped, startled as someone placed a hand on your shoulder. You turned to find Briana standing behind you.

“I’m fine,” you replied. “Why does everyone keep asking?”

“You’re not regretting this, are you?” She asked bluntly as she stepped beside you.

“There are a lot of things that I regret, but this thing between Rob and I is certainly not one of those things.”

“You seem… different is all.”

“How so?”

“You’re just not yourself this weekend.”

“I’m just tired,” you replied, turning away from her to avoid her stare. The last thing you wanted was for anyone to notice that it was something more than that.

It wasn’t a complete lie. You were exhausted for a lot of reasons. The fact that you were still holding on to a secret that was eating at you constantly didn’t help. You lost a lot of sleep over it and the thoughts of how Rob could react scared you. You were keeping it to yourself for now, and it was only building up.

“You sure?” She asked sympathetically.

“I’m sure,” you lied. “I’m just tired.”

“If you say so,” she sighed, obviously not convinced that something else wasn’t going on.

You looked at her, now wondering how good of a friend she might really be as you considered letting her in on a little something. Truthfully, you had been wanting to talk to someone for some time, but no moment ever felt right. Surely you couldn’t tell her anything without having talked to Rob first, but maybe you could find a sense of relief in letting some vague thoughts out.

“Can I ask you something?” You asked.

“Sure.”

“If you were keeping a secret,” you began, “something kind of big that you know you need to tell your significant other about, how would you tell him?”

“I guess that depends on the secret.”

“I mean, if you’ve only technically known that significant other for a few months, and the secret was… life changing… would you just come right out and say it?”

“What’s going on?”

“Asking for a friend,” you joked.

You avoided eye contact, knowing that she was looking right at you and judging you.

“Like I said, it depends on the seriousness of the secret, and the seriousness of the relationship.”

“What if the previously mentioned relationship is a difficult one?”

She studied you quietly for a minute as you pretended to listen to what was going on onstage. You didn’t want to show that you were freaking out on the inside, but you really wanted some sort of comfort from someone that things would be alright.

“Y/N, are you and Rob okay?”

“We’re fine,” you replied, trying your best to look as if her question had been insulting.

“Are you having second thoughts about your decision to try an actual relationship with him? Because, if you are; you have to tell him. It’s going to destroy him either way, but you can’t do something that you don’t really want to do.”

“I’m not having second thoughts,” you replied. “Just- it doesn’t matter. Pretend I never said anything.”

“Okay,” she said, looking concerned as she studied you. “To answer your question though, I’m a firm believer in being honest about everything with your partner; no matter how difficult the relationship is, and no matter how serious the secret is. You can’t build a relationship by keeping things from each other. You should let your friend know that.”

“I will,” you replied. “Thanks.”

Before she could say much else, and more importantly, before she could press you for more information, you were being introduced on stage.

You put on a fake smile, knowing that you had to forget about the things that were bothering you for a bit. You had made it this far with lying to everyone and tricking them into believing that you were happy, you could do it for a bit longer.

Later, after the work day had ended, you joined everyone else for dinner nearby, just as you usually did.

In truth, you were exhausted. The day had taken a lot out of you and you had worked hard at not seeming too off about things. Rob was in high spirits, and you figured it was best to keep up appearances along with him. It would look really bad if he seemed excited about your decision and you spent the weekend looking stressed.

Things seemed lighter among your friends at least. The focus that was usually on you and Rob and your mistake had shifted. Now, everyone talked among each other, ignoring the possibility that you and Rob were perhaps moving into things to quickly.

You politely turned down drinks as everyone else indulged, wondering if that right there would wave a red flag to anyone. Your stomach was turning; and you weren’t sure if it was from the anxiety that you were feeling or if it was from the general smells of the restaurant.

You tried to focus; smiling at people as they spoke to you, trying to engage in overall conversation, and acknowledging Rob each time he affectionately leaned in for a kiss.

‘ _I can get through this,_ ’ you kept telling yourself. Still, you felt as if you were forcing back the need to cry or get sick.

It was when everyone’s meals arrived that you thought your cover had been blown. You tried to be easy on yourself, ordering a bland chicken dinner in hopes that you could keep it down. For some reason though, Rob had decided on the salmon. The instant the waiter placed the dish down next to you, you knew you couldn’t avoid your queasiness any longer. As soon as you could smell it, you had to make a quick exit while still trying to remain calm.

“Excuse me,” you said softly as you stood up.

“Are you okay?” Rob asked, a hint of concern on his face.

He reached for your hand and you quickly pulled away, not wanting to linger for fear that you would embarrass yourself in front of the entire restaurant.

“I’m fine,” you replied, trying hard to hold back the need to throw up. “I just need to use the ladies room.”

You rushed off, trying not to make it obvious that you weren’t feeling well.

Once you had emptied your stomach, you stood up and took a moment to steady yourself. You wiped the tears from your face and took a deep breath before exiting the stall.

“Jesus!’ You shouted when you stepped out and was greeted by Briana. You didn’t even hear anyone else come into the restroom, and the suddenness of seeing her caused your heart to race.

“You scared the crap out of me,” you mumbled as you pushed past her to get to the sink. You breathed in and out, trying to steady your heart rate now.

“What’s going on?” Briana asked. She narrowed her eyes at you as you washed your hands and subsequently rinsed your mouth with water.

“Nothing is wrong,” you replied. “I’m just not feeling well. It’s no big deal.”

“You were fine all day until we got here. In fact, you were fine until food arrived.”

You shrugged, not wanting to make a big deal out of it.

Almost as soon as she had said it, a sudden look of realization came over her. Her eyes widened, mouth dropping open as she grabbed your arm excitedly.

“Oh my god!’ She screeched. “You’re pregnant!”

“Shut up, I am not.”

“You turned down drinks,” she pointed out. “You’ve turned down drinks all day.”

“Forgive me if I don’t drink all day long,” you said, rolling your eyes.

“You looked at Rob as if he had insulted you by ordering fish.”

“The smell…” you trailed off, swallowing back the need to throw up again just by the thought of it.

“Oh my god,” she reiterated. “Y/N!”

“Okay,” you sighed. “Please, don’t make a big deal out of this. I haven’t said anything to him yet.”

“How? Why? How?” Briana sputtered. She seemed to be more shocked than you had been when you first found out.

“I’ve known for a little while, I just haven’t had the chance to bring it up to him.”

“How far along are you?” She asked, looking you up and down. “You’ve been with Rob, what, a few months? You look great considering.”

“I did not get pregnant that night,” you argued. “By my estimation, I’m probably five weeks by now.”

“Wow, I had no idea that you were sleeping with your husband.”

“It’s not funny.”

“I didn’t mean that. I just didn’t realize…”

You didn’t say anything else, you couldn’t. You were suddenly overcome with guilt now that she knew and you hadn’t even mentioned it to Rob.

“You know, I stand by what I said when we discussed your friend today,” Briana added, offering you a smile. “He loves you. You’ve gone through a lot together, you can get through this.”

“You’re right,” you chuckled, trying to convince yourself. “He’ll be okay with it. I mean, what’s one more accident between us?”

“That’s the spirit… I think.”

“Can you just… keep this between us?” you asked. “I’m going to tell him. I’m just waiting for the right time.”

“My lips are sealed,” she smiled.

“Thank you,” you mumbled. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to try to make it through dinner without making this too obvious.”

**Rob’s POV**

Y/N was hiding something. He realized it rather quickly.

It was obvious by her behavior before they left L.A., and it was obvious now.

This weekend, things still seemed different. She was not herself. Most of the time, she seemed in a daze, as if she was constantly lost in her own thoughts.

He’d check in on her occasionally, making sure to let her know that he was there and in this with her completely.

He didn’t want to admit it, but he felt as if she was having second thoughts about everything.

After a conversation among the group, mostly concerning Rob and Y/N’s choice to see if they could make a real relationship out of this whole thing, Rob became even more concerned. She mostly sat back as everyone added their two cents. Rob felt as if he was on his own this weekend. Y/N was unusually quiet, an sort of sad.

Every time he’d ask if she was okay, she’d brush him off with a smile and a kiss.

“I’m fine.”

Those were the only words he really heard from her.

* * *

On Saturday, not much had changed. No matter how badly Rob wanted to know what was going on, he still couldn’t bring himself to pressure her to speak to him.

“She’s acting strange, right?” Rob asked Rich when Y/N was out of sight and he could safely express his concerns to someone without hurting her feelings.

“Well, yeah,” Rich replied. “You should both be acting strange.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean, this whole thing is crazy. Aren’t you freaking out even a little?”

“Sure, but I’m also relieved that we’ve gotten to this point. Do you know how long I’ve gone knowing that I love her but being too freaked out to do anything about it? This whole situation is fucked, but we’re actually together in the end.”

“You sure she’s on board?”

“Yeah, I really do. We really care about each other. Which is why I’m concerned with the way she’s been acting.”

“Maybe she’s just, trying to let it all sink in. It’s pretty heavy stuff.”

“I don’t want to lose her. At all. I just, wish I knew what was going on.”

“You think she’s having second thoughts?”

“Not that I want to admit it, but yes.”

“Talk to her,” Rich urged. “That’s all you can do.”

“I’ve tried. She said she had something important to tell me at one point. I blew her off and she’s avoided it ever since. I feel like whatever it was that she wanted to tell me is what’s making her act so weird.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have blown her off in the first place then,” he replied.

* * *


	22. Part 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob and Reader are finally ready to tell their secrets to each other. He didn’t think that his was all that bad, but Reader’s reaction proves otherwise. Caught up in her own emotions, Reader drops a bombshell on Rob in a way that she didn’t want to.

**Reader’s POV**

As the two of you walked back to the hotel together after dinner, he seemed concerned and had definitely noticed that something wasn’t right with you.

“Are you okay?” He asked as he slipped his jacket over your shoulders.

You were only a couple of blocks away from the hotel, and it wasn’t even a chilly night, but he still made the gesture which only made you adore him even more.

“Really,” you chuckled, “why does everyone keep asking me that?”

“Maybe because you’ve been acting strange,” he pointed out. “And there’s the fact that you kept running off to the restroom through dinner.”

“Okay,” you replied. “I’m just not feeling well is all.”

“You’re sick?”

“No. I think I’m just overly tired.”

“What do you need?” He asked as he wrapped an arm around you as the two of you walked.

“Sleep,” you smiled. “And you.”

You stopped walking, turning to face him as you wrapped your arms around his waist to pull him in.

“I’m not going to get sick if I kiss you, am I?”

You shook your head, giggling as he leaned in and kissed you softly.

“Let’s get to bed then,” he grinned as he pulled away.

He took your hand and started walking a little faster toward the hotel.

* * *

You almost told him. Again, it wasn’t the right time.

You could barely focus as he pressed up against you as you laid in bed with him. You couldn’t think straight as his hands wandered and his lips praised your bare skin.

You didn’t really know what you were waiting for. You began to question if you were in fact waiting for the right time, or if you were just too afraid to say anything at all.

He trusted you. He loved you so much that he had risked everything by being honest with you. You could have easily shot him down the moment he admitted his feelings for you. But you didn’t. You couldn’t deny something that you felt as well.

Right now, you felt that you were misleading him. Of course something like this secret you had been keeping could change everything. In actuality, you were terrified that everything the two of you had gone through and eventually figured out could be destroyed by yet another accident.

He let his hand work it’s way down, touching you in the very spot that you wanted him most. You were pulled from your thoughts by his movement, gasping at the intense pleasure that was already building within you.

This wasn’t the right time. You decided you would wait until tomorrow. You would tell him, eventually.

* * *

Saturday was more of the same.

You and Rob barely saw each other as you worked. The knowledge that you couldn’t keep holding in the secret that you had was eating at you constantly. To top it off, you still weren’t feeling well.

Briana had pulled you aside at one point in the afternoon, just to check on your progress of actually telling him the news. She looked extra disappointed when you told her that you still hadn’t said anything.

“There’s got to be the right time,” you reasoned. “A perfect time. I just haven’t found it yet.”

“Is there really a perfect time to tell your fake husband slash real life boyfriend that you’re pregnant?” She asked.

She had a point. This was not conventional. Nothing about your relationship was normal. In fact, it was still very much in the air how the two of you would actually handle things. You assumed you’d stay married; you had discussed it briefly anyway. But even you doubted that it would be the best way to go.

“Can we really keep a fake marriage together at this point?” You asked. “Are we crazy for thinking that we can really go through with being together like this?”

“I don’t have the answers for you,” she replied. “Either way, you have to tell him.”

* * *

You finished your day still with doubts. You loved him, you had come to that conclusion completely and honestly. There was no doubt in your mind about that anymore. It was the situation that still threw you for a loop. You didn’t know if you could consciously be okay with staying married like this, even if you loved each other. Marriage was a huge step that people took every day. Those people, the smart people, often took years to even come to the decision to make a relationship that permanent.

You still didn’t know Rob completely. You had known him for just over four months now, and most of that time had been spent being angry at him and the situation. Yes, you had made a point of getting to know each other, but only to a certain extent.

You hated that the two of you had skipped so many of the steps that went into creating a marriage. There had never been a first date, there had been no dating at all. You had only learned some of his quirks, and you knew that you had held back on showing him most of yours.

Thinking about it now, you realized that you never had the chance to learn him for real, and he never learned much about you.

Now, you were pregnant. You were going to have a child with a man that you were just now falling in love with, a man that you didn’t really know at all. If you were freaking out about it this much and questioning everything, you could only imagine how he would react when the time actually came for you to tell him.

Still, you knew you had to. Accident or not, he deserved to know. You could only hope that he would still be on board with this whole backwards dating idea once the truth came out.

* * *

That night, you watched Rob from the side of the stage at the concert, standing far back from the crowd of fans that had gathered there. Normally, you wouldn’t put yourself out there at all, reserving your view of the concert from backstage on a screen. Tonight though, you wanted to see him for real. You wanted to experience the band the same way that the fans did.

He was a great performer. You had always enjoyed his music and the amount of energy that the band and the rest of the cast put into the concert. It was an exhilarating feeling to actually take the time to watch it from a fans viewpoint.

Near the end of the show, you were smiling ear to ear, actually feeling proud that you could call him yours right now. For the first time, you thought that he could very well be perfect. He was handsome and kind and insanely talented. Not to mention that the sex was phenomenal.

Perhaps you could get used to this. You could very well move past your doubts and jump into this blindly with him. If you didn’t, there would certainly be a lot of other women who would be willing.

You were broken from your thoughts as Rob began to speak in between songs.

“I know that everyone knows that I’m married,” Rob began. “I also know that it’s been strange that neither of us really talk about it openly. I need to be honest about something.”

Your breath caught as he spoke. There was no way that he would blow your cover right now. Even if you thought that’s what he was doing, you tried to convince yourself that he wouldn’t do it.

“We got married on a whim,” he admitted. “And I know what people were saying about that. I can’t tell you what we were thinking exactly when it happened, but I can tell you that I love her. I always have. I loved her the moment I met her, which is why I knew I had to seal the deal.”

He glanced in your direction, even if you knew he couldn’t really see you behind the glaring lights. You breathe a sigh of relief that he wasn’t outing the two of you.

“I’m not going to avoid it any more, because I don’t care what anyone thinks about us. All I care about is that I have her with me on this crazy ride. Y/N, this one if for you.”

You grinned hard as he led the band into their next song. This time, it wasn’t a song that he had written about someone else. You hadn’t heard this one before, and as he sang through the lyrics, you realized that he had actually written it for you.

You had been waiting for the right moment to tell him the thing that you had been keeping from him. You had been holding back on purpose, waiting to see if he was being honest with you about the whole being in love thing.

The entire idea of it still scared you. Yes, you had spent some time trying to work through the things that you had both admitted to each other, and hearing him tell you those things had been a relief. Even saying the things you had wanted to say for so long was a relief. But, you had been precise in your timing without realizing it. You wanted to make sure that he really was in this with you. You had to know for sure that he cared for you before you flipped both of your lives upside down right now.

Watching him on stage right now was the moment that did it for you. He was always so vulnerable and open in times like this. Hearing him speak of you this way, hearing the words to this song; you knew you would be okay. You knew you would both be okay.

* * *

After the show, you hurried backstage to find him. You couldn’t wipe the smile off your face as you threw your arms around him and felt his lips against your skin.

“You were so great,” you said. “That song… thank you.”

“Of course,” he replied. “I’ve been keeping that a secret for a while.”

“I’m glad we decided to let go of our secrets,” you laughed. “Really though, I loved it.”

He took your hand then and led you away. You followed him toward the greenroom, taking note of the excitement that he was still buzzing with.

This was the moment. You had to tell him.

“Can I be honest with you?” He asked as you followed him to the green room.

The others had followed suit, moving into the room and subsequently starting the usual after party as you and Rob spoke.

“I’ve been wanting to be able to say all of that for so long,” he continued as he wrapped his arms around you. “It feels so good to finally say it and mean it.”

“Well, honesty does feel really good,” you chuckled.

“And there’s a lot that we need to continue to be honest about,” he said breathlessly.

“You’re absolutely right…”

Before you could say much else, he headed away from you briefly only to return with two beers. He handed one to you and you hesitantly took it, pausing as he clinked his bottle against yours, almost as if he were celebrating something.

“Thank you, but I can’t- don’t want this,” you said as you set the drink down on a nearby table.

“You sure, because you might need it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. I just- have something to tell you, and it’s maybe a bit serious.”

“Okay,” you replied, shaking your head. “Since we’re being honest with each other, there’s something I have to tell you as well…”

“Okay, and I can’t wait to hear it,” Rob cut you off. “But first, there’s something that you need to know. It’s been eating at me, and our therapist told me that I needed to tell you. It’s taken me way too long, but I just didn’t want to lose what we had.”

“Rob, now you’re scaring me,” you said, now forgetting about your news as you felt your heart drop. You wondered what could be so serious that he felt the need to tell Stephanie about it and in turn, she had told him that he needed to be honest about it with you.

“Okay,” he breathed out, “Here goes…”

He paused briefly, looking right at you almost regretfully.

“I might remember a bit more from that night than I told you.”

You took a moment to process his words. Surely you had heard him wrong. Perhaps he was talking about something else and your mind just immediately went to that night in Vegas out of habit. No way could he be announcing that he had been lying about what happened that night.

“What do you mean?” you asked carefully.

“Just- understand that my memories are still very hazy.” he explained as he suddenly became nervous..” But, I do remember you asking me to marry you.”

“Okay…”

“We were kissing, and it was intense. You asked me to marry you. I don’t know why you did it, but you did. I said yes.”

“I know, Ruth explained all of that, but I don’t remember any of it.”

“I know, but I thought you should know what I do remember.”

“Is that it? I mean, it’s not so bad,” you laughed. “I drunkenly proposed and you drunkenly accepted.”

“I remember getting the marriage license, Y/N.”

His words hit you hard. All this time, you assumed that neither of you had any recollection of that night. Now, months later he was telling you that he in fact, did remember something huge. In that moment, he could have helped the two of you completely avoid all of this, but for some reason, he chose not to.

“What?” You asked, hoping that he was just messing with you.

“I have a pretty clear memory of that moment. I know Ruth was there and I argued with her when she tried to stop us.”

“She said we were wasted and we didn’t know what we were doing…”

“And we were. But, I do remember some of it.”

“What do you remember exactly?” You asked, your voice rising as you became upset.

“I remember thinking that I needed to stop what we were doing,’ he said softly. “Then I remember just letting it happen. I should have stopped it when we got to the chapel, but I didn’t.”

“So, you were completely aware of what we were doing?” You asked, now feeling the sting of tears building up.

He nodded, ashamed now that he was admitting it out loud.

“Why did you let it happen?” You asked angrily. “How could you be aware that something like that was happening, and not stop it?”

“It was the way you looked at me that night. As if I was everything to you. You told me you loved me and that you wanted to marry me.”

“I was drunk,” you spat. “I didn’t know what I was doing.”

“I know. Neither did I to an extent. I knew I should have stopped it right then, but I didn’t want to. I think a part of me just thought it was a joke. I didn’t think it was serious.”

You let out a frustrated sigh, covering your face with your hands.

“What do you mean you thought it was a joke?!” You shouted. “How could getting a marriage license be a joke to you?”

“I just- wasn’t thinking…”

You wanted to be hearing him wrong. You wanted to pretend that he hadn’t said anything, especially given your current situation. You dropped your hands from your face to look at him, tears welling in your eyes as you felt sick upon seeing his face.

“How could you?” You shouted. “You knew what we were doing, and you let it happen?”

“I thought we liked each other,” he replied. “We hit it off that night, and I was so into you. I thought you were into me as well.”

“I was! But, I knew you for one day! I didn’t want to marry you!”

Your sudden shouting had gained the attention of everyone else in the room and you blushed as they looked toward you and Rob. You didn’t want to do this here, not in front of them. You were humiliated now, and you wanted to disappear.

“I realize I made a mistake,” he admitted. “I’ve felt terrible about it ever since.”

“You feel terrible?” You shouted. “You convinced me to stay married to you. You came to me and made me feel like it was my fault, like I was the one who was going to be ruined if people found out what we did.”

“Please, know that I just wasn’t thinking straight that night.”

“You just told me that you knew what was happening as it was happening! You let it happen!”

“I know. I was an idiot. I don’t have an explanation as to why I let it happen.”

“I- I can’t believe this-“ you cried as you ran your hands through your hair in disbelief.

How someone could be aware of something like this and still let it happen was beyond you. You didn’t know what to believe right now and your head began to spin as you tried to make sense of it. Had he really just not realized what was going on? Or, did he just consciously choose to let it happen for some other messed up reason?

“Once I realized what I had done, I knew we couldn’t end it. If we had ended it right away, we both would have looked bad.”

“No! You would have looked bad! You would have been the one to look like an asshole for knowingly marrying a drunk girl.”

“I was just… thinking of both of us.”

“You were thinking of yourself!” You sobbed. “How could you do this? You let me go on believing that you were just as lost as I was. You blamed Ruth for everything,” you cried as you pointed toward her. Everyone was watching still. You could feel their judgemental stares as you came undone just now. “And then you made me believe that you were in love with me.”

“Okay, I made a lot of mistakes, but don’t ever think for one second that I don’t love you…”

In an instant, his fear over your reaction had changed. Now he was serious as he used those words again, as if reminding you that he loved you was going to fix this gigantic fuck up that he had just admitted to.

“Why?” You asked again. “I can’t understand why…”

“I have my reasons for keeping that from you for as long as I did,” he replied. “I just didn’t want to lose you.”

“You’re doing this so that we’ll stay married,” you said softly as the realization hit you. The painful truth was out in the open now, apparently for everyone to witness. “You’re so set on not getting divorced again and looking like an idiot, you convinced me that you cared about me so that I’d stay married to you.”

“That’s not true-“ he began.

You noticed the way tears welled in his own eyes at your accusations. You wanted to believe that he did love you. You so desperately wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. You couldn’t rationally do that though; not when you understood that he had probably lied to you about being in love with you so that he could avoid being divorced again.

“You’re an asshole,” you said, choking out a sob as you turned from him. You made your way for the exit, feeling a pain in your chest as you made sense of all of this.

“Y/N, wait!” He called out to you. “Please, can we just talk about this? I made a mistake, I never meant to hurt you.”

“I had something that I needed to tell you,” you replied as you turned to face him one last time. “And you just destroyed everything.”

“I didn’t mean to-“

“What did you think you would accomplish by telling me this now? Why did you tell me that you loved me?”

“Because I do,” he said in frustration. “I told you the truth because I fell in love with you. At the time, I was just too afraid to bring it up.”

“You made me look like an idiot. All along, this was your fault, but you made me believe that it was mine.”

“It wasn’t until I realized how much I cared about you that I knew I had to say something. I couldn’t go on holding that secret in anymore.”

“You should have! You should have just ignored it and let me go on believing that you actually loved me.”

“Stop saying that,” he said sharply. “Stop acting as if I lied to you about that.”

“Didn’t you?” You asked as you wiped tears from your face.

“No. I never lied about that,” he said calmly, almost believably. “Y/N, does it really matter now?”

“What?” You asked, honestly confused by what he meant.

“We love each other,” he said, forcing a smile as he held your face in his hands. “Please, don’t let that one fuck up ruin what we have.”

“You lied to me,” you argued as you pulled away from his touch. “You lied about something huge, for months. How do I know that you haven’t been lying to me this entire time about everything else?”

“I never lied about anything else. I guess you’re right that, at the time, I should have said something. I know I should have, and I’ve hated myself every day for the fact that I allowed that to happen. But it doesn’t matter now, does it?”

You shook your head in disbelief, wondering how he could be so convinced that it was unimportant now. You were angry. He had lied to you this entire time about something that completely changed everything.

You noticed your friends again. None of them had moved or even took a breath during this entire thing. You and Rob had just told them that you were together as a real couple. You had explained to them that you had always been in love with each other. Now, they were watching it all fall apart just because Rob had lied to you about something serious.

You wanted to believe him when he insisted that he loved you. You loved him, and you wanted for this to be real.

Glancing around at everyone else, you felt like an idiot. Rob had blatantly lied to you. He had been the one person who really could have averted this whole thing from happening, and he had chose not to. Although you thought that it had been an accident, you understood that it had been a lie. Everything about this had been a lie.

“I can’t look at you right now,” you muttered. “This… whatever this is… it’s over. I want a divorce, and I want it immediately.”

“Y/N, come on,” he pleaded. “I thought we decided that we’d just go with it. We said we’d stay married while we went through this relationship.”

“What relationship?” You shouted. You let the tears fall freely now, the frustration and devastation taking over. “The one that was a complete lie from the beginning? You walked right into this, knowing what we were doing, and you took advantage of me. I’m not an idiot. I know what you were trying to do here.”

“You’re wrong,” he began.

You were already reaching for the door with every intention of walking away from him before you got really pissed. You had nothing else to say to him. The one thing that you had wanted to bring up was the last thing on your mind as you tried to make sense of the fact that he had kept something like this from you.

“Y/N, please… I never meant to hurt you.”

“You should have just kept it to yourself,” you said as tears fell down your face.

“Honesty,” he blurted out. “Isn’t this whole thing supposed to be about honesty now?”

“You’re right,” you replied flatly. “We’ve both been very dishonest with each other.”

“I’m just trying to do the right thing.”

“The right thing would have been to not let this happen at all.”

“Please,” he begged. “What we have-“

“Is an accident!” You cut him off, not wanting to hear any more. “This was always a mistake and I was an idiot for thinking otherwise.”

“Please, don’t-“ he breathed out.

“Since we’re on the topic of accidents,” you began. “Here’s another one for you…”

You paused only briefly, wondering if you should even say anything at this point. It sounded cruel in your head, and no matter how badly you wanted to hurt him right now, you didn’t want to do it this way. Regardless, you spoke before you could piece together your thoughts.

“I’m pregnant.”

You swear you could hear a collective gasp from everyone that had inadvertently stopped what they were doing to watch this mess unfold. You saw Rob’s face drop and you felt your own heart drop as the words left your mouth.

You felt an ache in your chest as the words came out, devastated that you were telling him this way. Even more, you were devastated that it had even happened now that you knew what you knew.

“How’s that for honesty?” You said coldly as you turned from him again.

You never did look back at him. You ignored the stares of your friends still, painfully aware that they had witnessed enough disappointment when it came to you and Rob. Instead, you held back your sobs as you stepped out the door and slammed it behind you.


	23. Part 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob tries his hand at explaining things, but Reader is persistent in not hearing him. Briana steps in to remind her that it’s not just about the two of them anymore. There’s one little thing that Reader has failed to consider when she insisted on an immediate divorce.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone told me recently that I always call Rob an asshole in my fics. This is accurate.
> 
> A short chapter just to get you through my lack of writing.

**Rob’s POV**

“What the hell just happened?” He asked out loud.

He knew the answer to that obviously, but a lot had just happened within the span of just a few minutes. He was in a daze though. Caught off guard by how she had taken his little secret, even more shocked by the thing that she had said in return.

“I was hoping you could tell us,” Rich said in return. 

Rob came to his senses, glancing around his friends now that the argument had subsided. They had witnessed all of that.

“Did she just…?” he stopped himself from repeating her words, not sure if he really wanted to believe it.

“Yeah, she did,” Briana said softly.

“That was a joke, right?” he asked. “She just said that because I pissed her off?”

“I don’t think she was joking,” Rich replied. “Jesus, Rob…”

“It’s not a joke,” Briana answered.

Rob looked at Briana, trying to read her as she confidently stated the obvious. It was then that he understood that Y/N wasn’t joking at all. The sincerity in Briana’s voice helped him to see that Y/N had definitely mentioned something to her already.

“Did she…?”

“I confronted her about it last night at dinner,” Briana explained. “Honestly, you’re an idiot for not even coming to the conclusion on your own.”

Rob ran a hand through his hair, letting out a loud sigh as he held himself together.

“You’re an even bigger idiot for telling her all of that,” Briana continued.

“Did you really remember all of that?” Ruth added.

“I shouldn’t have said anything…”

“You really did make me look like the bad guy here,” she pointed out. She eyed Rob, frowning now that she pieced things together from that night. “You knew. You knew what the two of you were doing and you blamed me for not stopping it.”

“Ruth, I’m sorry,” he replied sharply. “I really am, but this is not a good time.”

“What do you think you were trying to accomplish with even telling her anything?” Rich asked.

“I don’t know,” Rob shrugged. “The therapy stuff has been so great. We were doing so great. The therapist told me that I should tell her the truth. I thought that we were in a good enough place where I could be honest finally and it might be okay.”

“You told your accidental wife that you remember key details about the night that you accidentally married her. It doesn’t seem so accidental now,” Briana said.

“Look, it’s not like I did it purposely,” Rob defended himself. “I remember parts of that night, but I did not go through with it to hurt her. I was still drunk and not completely sure of what I was doing.”

“Why are you telling us?” Rich asked.

Rob glanced at Rich, unsure of what he meant. Rich rolled his eyes and pointed toward the door in frustration.

“You should be telling her this. The woman that you love just told you she was carrying your child and stormed out of here because you’re an idiot.”

“I should go after her,” Rob said softly, staring at the door.

“Yes, go after her,” Rich replied.

“She won’t forgive me for this. It didn’t sound so bad in my head, but out loud, I just sound like an asshole.”

“You are an asshole,” Rich reminded him. “But, if you really do love her, you’ve got to fix this.”

* * *

Rob did just as his friends recommended. He chased her. He made his way through the hotel, only catching her as she headed to their room.

“Y/N, stop,” he began as he slowed his run now that he caught up to her. Breathless, he reached for her hand. He wanted to make her just stop and listen to him, even though he wasn’t even sure what he could say at this point.

She pulled away from his grip immediately and continued to the door of their room, fumbling with the key card as she shakily let herself in with Rob right behind her. He watched her as she tried to avoid him, obviously still holding back somewhat on unleashing whatever pain she was feeling right now.

“I’m done listening to you,” she mumbled. “You’re a liar and you used me.”

“I didn’t,” he sighed. “I know I shouldn’t have lied about that, but I’m not using you. I love you. I love you so much and this is scaring the hell out of me.”

“Stop saying that,” she said angrily.

“No, I won’t, because it’s true. I know that sounded horrible,” he began, tears threatening to fall as he watched her move quickly around the room, throwing her clothes and belongings into her suitcase. “But, I think you misunderstood what I was trying to tell you.”

She stopped and turned to face him, face red in anger and tears staining her cheeks.

“I misunderstood?” She shouted. “You told me you remember what happened that night. Did I really misunderstand that?”

“No. And I do remember some of it, but Y/N, it wasn’t-“

“We are done here,” she explained. Her voice was eerily calm as she held her hand out to stop him.

He wanted desperately to explain this better, but he knew he was pushing it already. She was angry and she had every reason to be. It probably didn’t help that she was pregnant and a bit more emotional than usual.

“Can we please just talk about this?” He pressed again.

“We’re done!” She shouted.

Her anger and unwillingness to listen was only causing Rob to grow irritated. He needed for her to understand that it wasn’t intentional. Just because he had memory of that night didn’t mean that he understood what he was doing.

He knew that he could try to explain this until he was blue in the face, but right now, she wasn’t listening. The biggest fear he had in this moment was that she would walk away from him and never see him again, which terrified him considering that she was pregnant.

“That’s my baby too!” He exclaimed. He paused after he said it, then saying the words that he knew he shouldn’t say. “Isn’t it?”

“What are you insinuating?”

“I’m not- I’m not trying insinuate anything. I’m saying, that’s my baby. You can’t walk away from that.”

“Watch me.”

“N-no,” Rob stuttered in return. “I will not. You can’t just leave me right now.”

“I never should have fallen for any of it,” she said angrily. “What was this? Some sick idea you came up with? Get the new girl drunk and marry her for kicks? Then convince her that you love her, but not before knocking her up?”

“I didn’t do any of it for kicks, Y/N. It was an accident. I swear to you. I know I said I remembered some of it, and I do… but I did not realize at the time how serious it was. Please…” he reached for her again, taking her hand in his.

He was surprised that she didn’t pull away immediately, but the look on her face told him all that he needed to know right now.

“Please, will you just sit down and listen to me? Let me explain.”

She pulled her hand from his this time, turning back to focus on throwing the rest of her belongings into her bag. Rob watched helplessly as she cried. There was no amount of explaining that he could do that would fix this right now. She wasn’t going to listen to him.

“Where are you going to go?” He asked as she zipped up her bag and clumsily pulled it along the floor as she headed for the door.

“Anywhere but here,” she replied.

“You’re just backing out of the rest of the con?”

“No. I won’t let you affect my life that much. I’m sure one of the girls will let me stay with them for the rest of the time. But, I know that I can’t be around you right now.”

“Whatever I can do to make you believe that I wasn’t trying to hurt you or deceive you, I’ll do it. I’ll do anything you want.”

“You can’t do anything,” she replied. “It’s bad enough that this whole thing was an accident from the beginning. I can’t forgive you for the part you played. How could you do this to me?”

“We can do another session when we get back to L.A.,” he offered. “It’s done wonders for us so far.”

“That was before you told me that you lied,” she spat in return.

“Y/N…”

She opened the door and stepped out, leaving Rob standing there without the slightest idea of what he could even do at this point.

“I meant what I said,” she began as she stopped briefly in the hallway. “I want a divorce. We should have ended this a long time ago, but I guess I was just hoping that it didn’t all have to be a mistake.”

“I don’t think it was a mistake,” he replied. “And… we’re having a baby together? Y/N, that’s amazing.”

Rob gave her a smile, trying to let her know that he was happy about that. Maybe if he let her know that he was okay with the news and that he was more than willing to go through this with her, she’d at least talk to him.

“Don’t act like you’re happy about this.”

“I am though,” he replied. “I love you.”

“This is not love,” she said coldly. “You knowingly ruined my life and lied to me about it. How is that love?”

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

Luckily, you had Briana to turn to that night. All you had to do was give her a call as you sat in the hallway, crying. She had directed you to her and you breathed a sigh of relief when she invited you into her room, insisting that you just stay with her for the rest of the weekend.

She didn’t even give you a moment to compose yourself before moving right in on asking questions that you really didn’t want to answer.

You were confused as it was; knowing that you had to end this relationship even though the idea of it killed you.

“Did he try to explain himself at all?” She asked, referring to Rob and the bombshell that had been dropped on everyone that night.

You could sense the awkwardness the moment you stepped into her room with her. These people were his friends. They had known him longer than you and you were now realizing that they were definitely going to take his side in the end. Now, the awkwardness was prevalent as she seemed to press you for answers.

“I told him to not bother trying to explain himself.”

“His explanation doesn’t matter?”

You whipped your head toward her, angry that she was being so persistent about it.

“You do remember that he just told me that he remembered that night, don’t you? Do you recall the way he blamed Ruth for everything? How about the fact that he convinced me to stay married to him because I was the one to blame and I was the one who would be eaten alive by the fandom if anyone found out the truth? He told me he loved me…”

“And I think he does.”

“It has been one lie after another with him,” you shouted. “How am I supposed to believe that he loves me when everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie?”

“Maybe it wasn’t all lies,” she insisted.

“He’s trying to convince me to stay married to him so that he doesn’t have to go through another divorce,” you said. “All he wants is to save face and avoid whatever it is that people will say about all of this. He doesn’t love me. He just wants me to believe that he does so I’ll stay.”

“You know, that’s interesting that you’ve convinced yourself of that within the last hour or so, but you don’t really believe all of that. You love him too. You told me that you love him.”

“Doesn’t matter what I felt.”

“It does matter. Because I think that you love him so much, you’re terrified that someone who also loves you could hurt you the way that he did.”

“What would you do?” You asked quietly, trying to tone down your anger. “What do you think you would do if you were in my place?”

“I don’t know, I would hope that I’d never end up in a situation like this.”

“We were supposed to divorce in a couple of months anyway. I was stupid for even thinking that there could be something real there when the entire thing was just a mistake.”

“You didn’t even hear him out…”

“I know. I’m angry right now. I don’t want to hear more lies or excuses.”

“I get that, and you have every right to be angry.”

Briana moved closer, hugging you. You nearly collapsed in her arms as you cried, grateful to have someone to be there for you through this.

“I’m angry at him too, and it’s not even my life.”

“Then please stop trying to tell me that I need to hear him out.”

“I’m just- I guess I’m just worried about you and the baby.”

“I’ll be fine. Once this is over, I’ll be okay. Like I said, I’m an idiot for believing that this could be what it obviously isn’t.”

“Okay, sounds like you’re pretty set on the divorce thing…”

“I am.”

“But I also wonder if you have taken even a moment to consider the baby.”

“What?”

“Doesn’t that change anything? Doesn’t knowing that you’re having his child change your mind on at least listening to him?”

“I am not staying with him just because he knocked me up,” you said harshly. “Just like everything else right now, this was an accident.”

“I know, but it’s still his baby. You talk about divorcing as if it means that you’ll be done with him and he’ll be out of your life; but he won’t be. Having a child together ensures that he’s always going to be a part of your life somehow.”

You hadn’t stopped to consider that much. In fact, you were so angry about his confession, you hadn’t stopped to think about the fact that you were going to be parents together.

Your end game here was to end this lie of a relationship in hopes that you could just get him out of your life. You were hurt and felt betrayed and you just wanted the reason for your pain to disappear. You didn’t even think about the baby at this point. You hadn’t considered the possibility that Rob could very well want to be involved in his child’s life, which meant he would still be a part of yours.

“I guess- I guess I didn’t think that far ahead,” you admitted.

“You have to listen to him,” Briana insisted. “He has every right to remain involved now that there’s a child in the equation.”

“You’re right. I can’t stop him from being involved in that part of all of this if he wants to be.”

“So, you’ll reconsider the divorce thing for now? You’ll hear him out?”

“No. I’ve made up my mind on that already,” you replied. “Rob and I will just figure out the rest of it when the time comes.”


	24. Part 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob knew this was coming. He just really hoped that he was wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please bear with me… I’m struggling with writing, so this chapter is super short and to the point.

**Rob’s POV- the following week**

Y/N had left the con early on Sunday once her work was done. She had spent the day avoiding Rob completely. No matter how hard he tried to find a chance to talk to her, he never did get the opportunity. Before he knew it, she had left.

By the time Rob returned home on Monday, she was gone from there as well.

Anything that she had left at his place was no longer there and she had left her key on the table. He half-hoped for a note or something along with it, but he was only greeted by the empty house and all of his mistakes staring up at him as he looked at that key.

He made the attempt to contact her in the best way that he knew how; he called and left voicemails and sent her texts, pleading with her to at least hear him out now that they were home and hopefully the emotions they had both been feeling were calmer now.

She never did respond though. 

Rob spent that whole first day back home moping and wishing that he could magically go back and fix everything. He had made countless mistakes in this mess, and he only had himself to blame.

He considered going by her place later that evening when he became frustrated by her avoiding him. He knew that wouldn’t go well though. He knew that he had to give her some space even though doing so gave him anxiety.

He didn’t sleep well that first night. He spent his time tossing and turning, replaying the entire event in his head. Mostly, the thought of losing her, especially knowing that she was pregnant with his child, ate at him.

The rest of the week went mostly the same. He continued to reach out to her, and she continued to ignore him. He stayed in, feeling even more depressed as each day went by, at a loss of what to do at this point.

After another phone call that only went to her voicemail, Rob thumbed through his phone until he found Briana’s number. He knew that out of everyone else, she seemed to be the closest with Y/N. He knew that pressing her for answers or even taking a moment to beg her to talk to Y/N was desperate and pathetic, but he was out of options.

Briana answered quicker than expected, startling him.

“Rob?” Her voice came through the phone, almost too cheery. “What’s up?”

“N-nothing,” he stuttered out, now realizing that he was about to embarrass himself again. “Hey, I was just wondering if you’ve heard from Y/N at all. I’ve been trying to get a hold of her for a week, and nothing. I’m mostly just worried and want to make sure she’s okay.”

“She’s probably ignoring you for a reason.”

“Yeah- I know,” he replied. “Still. I’m worried about her.”

“She’s fine,” Briana said softly. “Well, as much as she can be considering…”

“I fucked up, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, I think you know that you really did.”

“Can you- can you maybe just talk to her for me?” He asked hopefully, still regretting that those words were even coming from his mouth.

“Don’t ask me to do that,” Briana replied. “I can’t…”

“She won’t listen to me,” Rob sighed. “I’ve tried all week. She won’t answer my calls or read my texts… I don’t know what to do.”

“You ever consider just backing off?” Briana asked bluntly. “I mean, why not try just letting it go? Maybe wait for her to come to you, if she wants to anyway.”

“Will she?” He asked hesitantly. “Is there going to come a point when she decides that she wants to talk to me again?”

“I think it’ll happen sooner than you realize,” she said.

“Did she say something about talking to me?”

“Look,” Briana bregan, “all I can tell you is that you’ll definitely hear from her soon. Just- don’t get your hopes up that it will go how you want it to go.”

“There’s something that you’re not telling me,” Rob argued. “You know something.”

“Do I really have to say it, Rob?” She asked. “I think you know what’s coming.”

* * *

Rob was sitting at home at the end of the week when the doorbell rang. He wasn’t really expecting anyone, and he had given up on trying to contact Y/N for a few days. Briana’s words however, played in his mind. He did know that he could expect to hear from Y/N, and he knew exactly what that mean. Right now, he hoped that this wasn’t that moment.

He curiously made his way to the door, opening it and being surprised when he saw Y/N standing there.

“Y/N!” He exclaimed. “I didn’t think I’d see you again. I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for days.”

“I know,” she replied.

“I’m glad you’re here. Come in.”

She stayed put just outside the door, looking up at him with a sad expression.

“There’s no need for that.”

“Will you please just come in so we can talk?” He pleaded.

That was when she held her hand out to him, indicating that she wanted him to take the large envelope that she had been holding.

He hesitated, his heart dropping. He knew exactly what this was, and although he definitely saw it coming, he was not ready for it.

“Come in,” he said softly, his eyes pleading with her again as he silently refused to take it.

She let out a sigh, dropping her arm down as Rob didn’t even make a movement to take the envelope.

“I just want this to be over with,” she said softly. “Will you please just take this?”

“I will,” he promised, “if you at least come in and talk to me.”

She rolled her eyes at him as he stepped aside to let her in. He could tell that she really didn’t want to be here, but she did as he asked and stepped inside.

She paused in the living room as he closed the door behind her, immediately holding the envelope out to him again.

“I don’t want to talk,” she began. “I don’t want to hear any more. I just want for us to end this now.”

“Y/N, I-”

“Stop!” She cut him off. “Please just stop. There’s nothing else you can say. Just take this.”

She shoved the envelope against his chest, her eyes welling as she tried to hold herself together. Rob sighed and reached up, taking hold of the envelope as she quickly let go of it.

He watched her as he opened it slowly, hands shaky as he retrieved the stack of documents that were inside. He glance over the first page, closing his eyes as he took in the fact that this was indeed what he had been dreading.

“So, this is it?” He asked as he held the forms up to examine them more closely. He stepped into the living room and sat heavily on the couch as his eyes scanned the papers.

“Yeah,” she breathed out. “That’s it. They just need our signatures and this is all over.”

“Do you- do you mind if I take a day or two to read them?” He asked.

“No,” she replied. “That’s fine. They’re exactly what we talked about in the beginning… pretty straightforward, but it’s okay.”

“I just want to make sure I’m not signing my life away,” he chuckled. “I know how this stuff goes.”

“Take your time, but not too much time.”

Rob let out a slow breath, looking up at her again. This was what she wanted, and it was probably what they should have done a long time ago. He knew that he easily could have just scanned the pages right now and signed what needed to be signed, but even he knew that he wanted to try to drag this out if he could, if only to maybe have another chance at making her listen to him.

“Just give me a day or two,” he said.

“It’s really for the best,” she replied. “You know that, right?”

Rob hung his head, already hurting just by having her here again knowing that she was leaving him for good. There was so much more to this whole thing than just another divorce.

“Y/N, what about the other thing?” He asked quietly.

“What other thing?”

His eyes darted to her stomach and she nervously placed a hand over it when she realized what he was talking about.

“Just let me worry about this,” she said softly.

“That’s my baby too,” he reminded her.

“I know. But in the end, it’s my responsibility, isn’t it?”

“Not just yours.”

“Look, you can be as involved as you want to be, I’m not going to force you though.”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to do this if we stayed together?”

He watched her as she looked at him almost regretfully. A tear rolled down her cheek and she made quick work of wiping it away, forcing back anything else that might show him that she was just as upset by all of this.

“Do you think it’s fair to bring up a child in a relationship that started as an accident and ended up being a complete lie?” She asked bitterly.

“It wasn’t all a lie, Y/N,” he began. He reached out to her, grasping onto her hand. She pulled away immediately though, reminding him that he didn’t have the right to touch her.

“I told you I don’t want to hear it. Just sign the damn papers, Rob.”

Before he could argue, she stepped away, turning her back to him and heading for the door. He could see her shoulders shake as she audibly sobbed while she walked away.

He hated seeing her so upset considering the condition she was in. Even more, he hated himself for the fact that this was all his fault.

He stood up and began to follow her, thinking that his presence could make her feel better even if he knew deep down that wasn’t the case.

“Y/N,” he whispered as he approached her. She turned to face him again and this time he saw that she was indeed crying, letting out all of the disappointment that she was feeling.

As if it were a natural reaction, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him, holding her as she cried. He hoped it would comfort her, but almost as soon as he made the movement, she was pushing him away again.

“Stop,” she muttered. “I told you, you can’t do this.”

“I don’t want to see you upset like this.”

“Then maybe you shouldn’t have lied to me,” she spat.

“I just withheld a truth-”

“No. You lied about that night and you lied when you told me that you loved me. I just want the lie to be over.”

“Please… I don’t know what else I can say or do to make you believe me. Yes, I lied about that one thing. But the rest of it was not a lie. I do love you.”

“I’ll get in touch in a couple of days,” she said, completely ignoring his pleas. “Just- sign the papers.”

Before Rob could think of how to react, she was already out the door, slamming it closed behind her as she left.

He froze in place, unable to move or think as he watched her walk out on him yet again. When he finally came to his senses, he looked down at the document that he had nearly crumpled in his hand.

He knew that he should just do what she wanted at this point. They had created a huge mess together, most of which had only been amplified by his own actions and choices, and it made sense to end it before it got even worse. Still, he thought about all of the things that he would be giving up if he gave into her request for a divorce. He would be giving up on the woman that he loved and their child. Even if Y/N was still not willing to hear him out, he knew he would be making a mistake if he signed these forms without putting up a fight first.

He suddenly realized how selfish he really was. The plan that he was currently thinking through would piss her off to no end. But he truly thought that it would benefit the both of them. He only hoped that it would come across that way.

“You’re a fucking idiot,” he said out loud to himself.


	25. Part 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob knows he shouldn’t drag this out. He should give in to what Reader wants, especially since everything was his fault. He has one plan though; hopefully it will work in his favor.

**Rob’s POV- 2 Weeks Later**

His plan had worked. He knew it was a bad move, but it was his turn to avoid her for as long as he could. He knew that if he failed to do as she asked and return the paperwork to her in a couple of days like he said he would, she’d have to contact him. It took everything in him not to answer her calls and texts. He wanted to hear her voice. He wanted to still be a part of her life.

His plan worked even better than he thought it would, and after a couple of weeks, she finally decided to confront him face-to-face.

He answered the door that day, knowing that it could only be her. He had given her the cold shoulder for long enough that her messages to him were mostly her threatening to show up unannounced in order to get the forms. That had been his plan all along.

“Hey, Y/N,” he said as he answered the door. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Yes, you were,” she replied, seemingly annoyed as she let herself in. “Give me the paperwork.”

“Oh, yeah,” he mumbled, “I’ve got everything on the table.”

She glared at him and crossed the room, quickly retrieving the envelope from the table where Rob had left it.

She opened it, pulling the papers out to look them over.

“Rob… “ she whispered as she flipped through the forms. “You didn’t sign any of these.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“You said two days,” she shouted. “You’ve had these for two weeks, and you still didn’t sign them!”

“Okay, you’re angry,” he said calmly.

“I am beyond angry.”

“I just- wanted to make a deal first.”

“What? We’re not making a deal. You sign these now and stop putting it off.”

“Go back to couples counseling with me one more time.”

“Oh my god,” she sighed, running her hand down her face in frustration. “We are not doing this. There is no relationship. We are not a real couple. This has to end.”

“We’re still having a baby. I just want to make sure that I get to be a part of that.”

“Rob, I would never keep you from your child,” she said. She looked at him, offended that he would even think that she was capable of something like that.

“Please. Just do this one thing for me,” he pleaded. “And I swear I’ll sign them.”

“You think I owe you a favor? You’re the one who lied. You’re the one who hurt me. I don’t owe you anything.”

“No, of course you don’t owe me anything. But can you blame me for doing anything that I can to fight for us?”

“You cannot hold me hostage in this marriage.”

“I’m not trying to. I just need you to listen to me before you make this decision. The only time you ever listen to me is when we’re in therapy.”

“No, absolutely not. I won’t do it.”

“Fine. I’m just gonna need a few more days to look these over then,” Rob replied, snatching the forms from her hands. “I’m sure you understand.”

“Really?” She said angrily. “You’re really just going to drag this out longer?”

“I just need to have my lawyer look at everything. Who knows how long that could take?”

“Okay. Fine,” she said through gritted teeth. “I’ll go to the damn session.”

“Really?”

“Yes. If it gets you to stop being a jerk and to just let this go, I’ll do it.”

“Thank you.”

“Only if you swear to sign these right after.”

“If you still want me to.”

“Oh, I’m not going to change my mind,” she reminded him. “But if you want to waste everyone’s time, that’s fine.”

“I’ll sign them,” he insisted. “If you want me to. I promise.”

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

“It’s nice to see you two again,” Stephanie smiled. “Rob tells me your relationship has hit a rough patch though.”

“Yeah, the rough patch in which he won’t sign the damn divorce papers,” you replied.

“Oh,” she began, looking sort of shocked. “I didn’t realize it was that bad. The last time we met, things seemed to be working out well, considering.”

“Yeah, well, a lot of things came out into the open and I’d rather not stay in something that was a lie from the very beginning.”

“An accident, you mean? This whole marriage was just an accident.”

“That’s what I thought. Turns out, there’s a whole lot more to it.”

“Let’s talk about it.”

You explained your side of the story; the lie, the betrayal, the fact that you were certain that he only wanted you to stay married to him because he didn’t want another divorce. You thought that he didn’t love you, but instead, he felt that it was better to lie about loving you so that you wouldn’t divorce him like you had both planned on doing early on. You were certain he had manipulated you all along to avoid a separation.

“He’s so desperate about saving his image, he’d rather continue to lie than to just let this end,” you explained. “I can’t stay in a lie.”

“You don’t believe that he loves you?”

“How could I? Did he tell you that he lied to me?” You asked. “Did he mention the fact that he remembered a key part of that night and chose to keep it from me this entire time?”

“Yes, he did.”

“Really?” you asked as you turned to face Rob. “You could tell her the truth, but you couldn’t tell me?”

“She’s the reason why I came clean about it,” he admitted. “We talked about it during a solo session and she told me that I should be honest with you.”

“I also told you that you needed to accept Y/N’s reaction to that information, no matter what that was.”

“I know…”

“It seems, you’ve done the exact opposite of accepting how she feels about that. You’ve continued to hold her in this accidental marriage even though she didn’t accept your mistake. That’s not what we discussed.”

“I can’t-” he stuttered out, stumbling over what to say. “I can’t accept it.”

“You hurt her,” Stephanie pointed out. “We talked about this. You knew that the truth would hurt her.”

“I know! But, I can’t just let her go because she’s angry with me. She hasn’t even listened to me.”

“You won’t let him explain himself?”

“I’ve heard all that I need to hear. He lied to me. He kept something really important from me. Not only that, he manipulated me into staying married to him until we were far past being able to annul this. He told me that he loved me-” you choked out, tears forming in your eyes. “He said he loved me and he took advantage of the feelings that I had for him. Now; I’m pregnant, about to be divorced and alone…”

“Pregnant?” Stephanie asked, eyes wide as the news hit her.

“Yes. I only slept with my husband because I thought he loved me. That was a mistake.”

“I just need her to listen to me,” Rob insisted. “Can you just mediate this for me?”

“Y/N, you’re here because you agreed to it,” Stephanie began. “Will you listen to him?”

“Yes. I will listen. But I’m making no promises that anything he says will change my mind.”

Rob turned to face you. Your chest ached a bit when you noticed sad he seemed to be, but you pushed aside that hurt because you knew this was all an act. You knew he was capable of pretending and doing just about anything for his own benefit.  

“Okay,” he began. “Yes, this was all an accident from the beginning. A mistake. I did fail to mention that I remembered all of that. That was wrong of me. At first, I kept it to myself because I knew we had done something stupid. Even more, I knew that I had made it worse by not doing something about it right away. I could have stopped it before it happened, but I didn’t. I could have fixed it. I could have said that I knew what had happened and that you were not in your right mind. We could have had it annulled.”

“But you were a coward.”

“Yes. I didn’t want anyone to know my part in that. I chickened out when I thought about telling you the truth right away. I thought it would be easier if we just stayed married. And it was easy for a while. We started to actually like each other. We fell in love.”

“No, we didn’t fall in love,” you said bitterly. “Neither of us meant it.”

“I meant it. There were so many times I wanted to tell you the truth, but when I realized how I felt about you, I was afraid of fucking it up.”

“You should have told me the truth right away.”

“I know. I wish I had,” he said sadly. “When it got the point where I thought we were okay; that we were happy together… I finally told you because I thought we could get through it.”

“You thought I’d forgive you and we’d just be okay?”

“Yes. But you were understandably upset. You have to believe me when I tell you that I do love you. This whole thing is killing me. I can’t lose you over that stupid decision I made.”

“You need to stop lying,” you spat.

“I’m not lying.”

“How do you expect me to believe you when you’ve been lying to me from the beginning?”

“I-I don’t know,” he stuttered in return. “I just need you to try.”

“I did try.”

“Look, I know I shouldn’t have kept that from you. I hate myself for what I did. When I realized that I really was falling for you, I talked to her about it because I began to feel guilty for keeping it from you. When we decided to do this for real, I knew I had to be honest. I just didn’t realize how horrible it sounded until I actually said it to you.”

“It’s not just that, Rob…”

“I might have convinced you to stay married to me for my own selfish reasons. I admit that. But, I never lied when I said that I loved you. I did fall in love with you. That’s why I’m trying to damn hard to make you reconsider this. I know you love me too. Please.”

“Maybe we both lied to each other,” you replied. You bit your lip, knowing that you were still sticking with your choice, no matter how painful it was. You knew you had to let him go and you knew that you needed to make it hurt so that he’d give up on the idea of the two of you reconciling. “Maybe I didn’t mean it when I said that I loved you.”

“See, now I think you’re lying,” he said softly.

“I don’t love you,” you replied coldly. “I think I just loved the idea of being in love with you.”

“Don’t say that. I’m just trying to be honest for once, and I need for you to be honest as well.”

“I am being honest,” you said firmly. You were filled with anger again; some of it directed at him, some it directed at yourself for the fact that you didn’t want to believe him. “I don’t love you.”

“You’re just saying that because I hurt you and you’re scared…”

“I just want you to sign the goddam divorce papers,” you shouted, losing your cool now.

“You said you’d do the therapy session…”

“And I did,” you reminded him. “I’m here. I listened to you and I still don’t want to hear it. Just stop dragging this out.”

You had heard him out. Just as you said you would. You wanted to believe him; wanted to believe that the entire thing had been a mistake on his part and that he was at least telling the truth about how he felt about you. A part of you did believe it.

But, you didn’t want to be the idiot who blindly stayed with a man that you barely knew based on a feeling. Especially at this point, you couldn’t stay in a lie knowing that you were going to have a child.

You listened to Stephanie talk. Her voice droned on as you heard her talk about ways you could both work on your marriage and earn each other’s trust again. You were sure they were all ideas that could possibly work, but at this point, you were too hurt to even pay much attention.

You had made up your mind some time ago. Rob had basically forced you into showing up here to try to talk you out of leaving him. Every selfish thing that he had done so far overshadowed all of the good things that you felt when you were with him.

When Stephanie had stopped talking and you forced yourself out of your daze, you and Rob both left her office. Your options still ran circles in your head.

* * *

As the two of you walked out of the building, you didn’t even know what to say at this point. Rob’s words stuck with you, and you wanted so desperately to believe him. You wanted to believe that he loved you and that, despite all of the difficult things, he really was fighting for you because of his love for you.

Knowing that he had lied, that he had convinced you to stay with him essentially for his own gain in the beginning, all of that also stayed with you. You had never been more confused in your life than you were right now.

“Y/N,” Rob began, “I meant every word of what I said in there.”

You stopped at your car, turning to face him again.

For the first time in a long time, you wanted to have him hold you. You wanted to kiss him and go on pretending that this wasn’t all a massive mistake. You wanted to believe him.

“Okay,” you replied simply.

He held up the envelope that he had been carrying, giving you a look as if to ask what you wanted to do.

You hesitated. You opened your mouth to speak, but stopped yourself short when you realized that you couldn’t give in to him. You couldn’t stay with someone who had done nothing but manipulate you, no matter how much you really did care about him.

“What are we doing?” He asked.

You swallowed hard, considering things for a moment.

“We…” you paused, wondering if this really was the right choice. “We are getting a divorce.”

You watched as his expression fell, his hand dropping as he gripped onto the envelope.

“Sign them,” you demanded.

“I uh, I don’t have a pen,” he choked out.

You fumbled through your bag, mostly trying to avoid looking at him as his eyes welled up with tears. This hurt a whole lot more than you expected it to, but you knew it had to be done. Once you found a pen, you handed it over to him.

“Right now?” He asked as he took the pen from you.

“You promised me.”

He looked away from you, removing the papers from the envelope with shaky hands. He took a deep breath as he leaned over the hood of the car, using it as something sturdy to write on. He paused only briefly before scratching his name across the first page, then flipping through each paper and signing where he was expected to. Once he was done, he handed the pen back to you and returned the papers to the envelope which he also handed to you.

“Thank you,” you said softly. “It really is for the best.”


	26. Part 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob has finally given into what Reader wants, no matter how hard it is for him to do that. The next convention proves to be difficult when the reality of having a baby is very noticeable, and Rob begins to feel left out. Briana stumbles upon Reader’s secret and also reminds Reader that this isn’t all about just her.

**Rob’s POV**

He had taken a few days to think about what had happened recently. He knew he had to accept Y/N’s decision and move on from it, regardless of how much he loved her. He had been trying his hardest to not lose her, but just the look of devastation that was constantly present in her eyes was finally enough to let him know that he had done something that she couldn’t forgive him for. Then, there was the knowledge that they were having a baby together. He knew that at this point, that had to be his biggest concern. He had failed miserably as a husband, he didn’t want to fail as a father either.

He and Y/N had talked very briefly about what would happen next, but even she didn’t have the answers to anything. She had looked at him with an almost pleading look in her eyes as she admitted that she had no idea what she was going to do.

All he could do was remind her that he was still there with her, even if they couldn’t be together. 

That had been the basis of their interactions lately. He stopped trying to convince her to stay, and she stopped yelling at him. They kept their conversations strictly about the baby, which was still difficult for Rob as he still felt the need to just try to do what he could to make her believe him.

Throughout the next couple of weeks, they stopped talking completely, or rather, she stopped talking to him. He made sure to text occasionally, just to check in to see how she was feeling or to ask if she needed anything. Mostly, she just insisted that his help wasn’t needed at all.

By the time the next convention weekend rolled around, Rob knew that seeing Y/N again was going to hurt.

To top it off, he hadn’t heard anything else about the divorce at all. At this point, he didn’t know when she had filed or even if she did.

Before he even had the chance to work up the courage to ask her about it, she had sought him out.

He was surprised that she was even willing to look at him after everything that had happened. He was even more surprised when he noticed that she was definitely visibly pregnant. Despite the fact that when she did approach him, looking just as angry as ever, he felt a bit of happiness inside at the sight of her.

“Wow,” he mumbled. “Look at you.”

She looked down at herself, making the movement to try to cover her belly with her sweater.

“It’s really noticeable, isn’t it?”

“Uh, y-yeah,” he stuttered out, still in a bit of shock as the reality of it was finally setting in.

“Shit, I’m just trying to not make it obvious. I swear I woke up the other day and I had just grown overnight.”

“Why are you trying to not make it obvious?” He asked as he stared at her stomach. “You’re pregnant and you’re going to get bigger. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Um, maybe you’ve forgotten that no one knows about this,” she replied. “And we’re divorcing. Can you imagine the field day people with have with this?”

“I didn’t think about that I guess,” he admitted. “How far along are you now anyway?”

“Twelve weeks,” she replied after thinking about it for a minute.

“Wow. I didn’t even realize…”

“I know. I’m sorry. It’s already going by fast. I’m actually doing an ultrasound when this weekend is over.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I’m supposed to be able to hear the heartbeat and see what the baby looks like.”

“That’s- that’s great,” Rob replied, feeling a knot grow in his throat as he tried not to get upset over how casually she was talking about something that she obviously didn’t want him to be a part of.

“Also, did you realize how long it can take to get a divorce?” She asked, now changing the subject.

“Uh- yeah,” he replied. “My last one took months to be finalized.”

She let out a sigh, looking defeated as he said it.

“Um, when did you file?”

She glanced up at him, giving him a look that he couldn’t quite read.

“Right away,” she said. “Of course I filed right away.”

“Well, we have at least another month of being married before it’s officially over,” he continued. “Possibly up to a year.”

“A year?” She asked, exasperated by the thought of it dragging out that long.

“Sometimes. It just depends.”

“Okay,” she sighed again. “I just wanted to make sure that we’re on the same page. I don’t want to make a huge deal out of this. I know we talked about making it obvious that things were falling apart, but I’ve thought about it and I’d rather just do this quietly.”

“What do you mean?”

“Can we just not talk about it at all until it’s officially over?”

“You want to pretend as if it’s not happening?”

“For now. That doesn’t mean that I want to be around you or that I’ve forgiven you in any way, but we need to remain friendly at least publicly.”

“So, I’m not allowed to announce that I’m about to have another ex-wife?”

“Don’t joke. This isn’t funny. I don’t want people to be suspicious. I think it’s best if we just continue to be married, like we are, and not raise eyebrows by letting people see that we’re not happy.”

“I don’t know if I can do that…”

“You forced me to pretend that I was in a happy marriage,” she reminded him. “You can pretend for my sake. You owe me this.”

“Fine,” he breathed out. “You’re right.”

He felt guilty as it was, all Y/N had to do at this point was lay on more guilt to make him agree with her. He wasn’t sure why she had changed her mind about the plan that they had worked out in the very beginning. They had wanted people to talk, to speculate that maybe things weren’t going well. They had thought that by doing that, it would not only make the separation real, but it would also make their fake marriage look real.

Now, she spoke to him with a look in her eyes that only made him feel as if she were regretting this decision. What was it that made her choose to keep their divorce a secret until it was actually over? He could be wrong, but maybe it had a lot to do with the fact that their fake marriage had become very real, and now they were both faced with the pain and embarrassment of it ending.

“Thank you,” she replied. “I just- don’t need people in our business. This is hard enough as it is, especially when people inevitably find out that we’re having a baby.”

“Yeah, I guess this all became a lot more real than we expected it to ever be.”

“It really changes everything,” she said softly. “I just feel strangely protective of our baby. Really, that’s the only reason I don’t want to make it known just yet that we’re separating.”

“I understand.”

“Good. At least we’re on the same page about something.”

“Don’t you think that we should just announce that you’re pregnant though?” He asked suddenly. The longer he looked at her, the more he felt that people were definitely going to notice.

“I think that’s a terrible idea,” she muttered.

“Okay, but I’m just saying, it’s noticeable. Might be easier to announce it before we’re officially divorced too.”

“God,” she sighed as she considered his idea. “What a mess. Huh?”

“Yeah. We really did make a mess of things.”

“I’ll tell you what. I’ll think about it. Maybe it is better that we just tell people while we’re still pretending to be happy. Might make this all look a lot better than it really is.”

“Whatever you want to do, Y/N.”

“I’ll let you know. But for now, I have photo ops and I have to figure out how to make this a bit more discreet,” she explained as she turned from him. “I’ll see you around.”

“Let me know if you need anything,” he offered. “No matter what, I’m here for you.”

“Sure, thank you.”

“And keep me updated on the divorce. I’d like to be aware of when it’s official.”

She forced a half-smile, nodded, and turned from him.

He watched her walk away again, feeling that all too familiar pain in his heart. He had hoped for a lot just then. Hoped that maybe she’d say she reconsidered filing for a divorce; hoped that she might consider asking him to be a part of the whole ultrasound thing. But obviously, she was pretty focused on doing it all by herself, even though he so desperately wanted to be a part of the baby thing as well.  At this point, given how terrible he had been to her, could he really say anything?

* * *

**Reader’s POV- later that evening**

“I’m almost ready,” you said as you let Briana into your room.

She sat on the couch as you wander off back to the bathroom to finish getting ready.

“Is it really just a girls night?” You called out to her as you pulled your hair up.

“Yeah, just us girls. I promise, no Rob.”

“Good. I’m not sure how much longer I can deal with him. I can’t wait for this to be done with.”

“Yeah, sure,” she mumbled. “You’re obviously really ready for it to end.”

“Did I tell you that I had to beg him to sign the forms?” You continued. You focused on applying your lipstick, still talking to her as she waited in the other room. “It took him weeks. He did it on purpose so he could make me go see the therapist with him. Can you believe that?”

“Well, I can believe it actually. Seems like he’s just trying to save his marriage. Can’t blame him for that.”

“Really?” You scoffed as you left the bathroom. You stepped into the hotel room, slipping on your jacket as you stared at her. “You’re taking his side on this?”

“I’m not taking anyone’s side.”

“Of course you are. He’s your friend. I don’t know why I thought anyone would take my side.”

“I’m really not,” she insisted. “But, if you’re so mad about him lying to you, then why are you lying to him?”

“What are you talking about? I’ve never lied to him.”

“I was right there when you told him that you filed for the divorce.”

“You overheard that conversation?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“I don’t see what that has to do with anything,” you replied. “We’re divorcing. People just need to deal with it.”

“You never filed,” Briana said sternly.

“What? Of course I did.”

“You told me that you hounded him to sign those documents, and when you finally got what you wanted, you didn’t even go through with it.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about…”

“Really? Because they’re right here,” she said as she held the envelope up for you to see. “You still have them.”

“You looked through my stuff?”

“I saw it in your bag and I was curious,” she grinned. “You never even signed them.”

You froze, not knowing what to even say to that. She was right, you had been caught. You had forced Rob into signing them, rushed him even, and you never even signed them yourself.

“Why did you go through my stuff?” You asked, trying to take the focus away from the fact that you had lied.

You suddenly felt humiliated that you had been caught. Truthfully, you didn’t know why you hadn’t filed the paperwork yet. You had begged Rob to sign the forms, and when he finally did, you felt so much relief. It wasn’t until you got home later on and sat down to sign them yourself that you felt a wave of sadness wash over you.

You stared at the documents for most of the night, trying to talk yourself into just doing it while fighting the fact that you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. You tucked them away back into the envelope when you realized you couldn’t do it just yet and convinced yourself that you would do it the next morning.

The hesitation dragged on. For days. Each day, you went through an internal conversation with yourself. You wondered if maybe you were overreacting. You thought about the possibility that maybe he was being truthful about everything else. At the same time, you were still angry at that one lie and it in turn made you believe that everything else had been a lie.

Knowing that you couldn’t make a firm decision based on your ever-changing emotions, you decided to wait. You chalked it up to hormones and mood swings from your pregnancy. You told yourself that you weren’t in the right mindset to make a choice.

Now, you felt bad for the fact that you were letting Rob believe that it was already said and done. He thought the divorce was in process, and you realized that he wasn’t the only liar here.

“I guess we can all be a little untrustworthy,” Briana said. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t know what to say.”

“Just tell me why you haven’t signed them.”

“I couldn’t,” you choked out. “I almost did. After therapy, I was so upset with him, I was ready to do it. But, I started thinking about everything and I stopped myself.”

“Then why are you saying that the paperwork has been filed? Rob is moping around thinking that his marriage is ending sooner rather than later, but you’re lying to him.”

“Don’t tell him, please. I’m going to do it. As soon as I get home after this con, consider it done.”

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself? Because it sounds an awful lot like you are just trying to talk yourself into it.”

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” you admitted. You felt the sting of tears build up now that you were confronted not only by yourself, but by someone who cared about both you and Rob.

“Look, I get that you’re convinced that what he did was malicious and manipulative. And it was in a way. But, that man loves you so much. I know he does. I know that you know he does.”

“It doesn’t matter,” you said sharply. “I don’t love him. I can’t even look at him without being angry.”

“Are you sure about that? Because if I really hated the man who accidentally married me, lied about what he remembered, and convinced me to stay married for his own benefit; I would’ve ended this thing in a second. But, here we are. Months later and you’ve got the paperwork with his name on it, and you can’t even bring yourself to do your part.”

“The difference is that we’re having a baby.”

“No. That doesn’t matter,” she said bluntly. “You’re having a baby whether or not you’re married. The fact is, you’re dragging this out now because you know you’re making a mistake.”

You pulled back, upset that she was calling you out like this. When and how you chose to go about this wasn’t her concern. She had no right to come in here and tell you what you were thinking and feeling.

“The only mistake I made was believing him.”

“He told you the truth, Y/N. It might’ve taken him way too long to do it, but if he really only wanted to stay married to you for his own benefit, he could have easily never said a thing. He could have kept that secret that only he knew to himself. No one would have known.”

“He felt guilty.”

“Of course he did,” she said. Her face turned up in what seemed to be anger as she defended her friend. “Because he loves you. He couldn’t continue to lie to the woman that he loves. He just thought that you were both so in love with each other, you could move past the mistakes. He thought you could forgive him.”

“Would you?” You asked bluntly. “If you were in my shoes, could you forgive him for that?”

“Yes. Because everyone makes mistakes, but sometimes forgiveness is necessary. Even when it’s something really bad. I’m just saying, he cared about you enough to be honest finally, even though he knew it could ruin everything.”

“That was a huge lie,” you choked out as you felt the tears well up.

“Yeah, well, you’re not doing anyone any favors by insisting that you don’t even love him. You’re allowed to love people who hurt you. You’re allowed to forgive. That’s all love really is.”

You hung your head, staring down at your shoes as you let her words sink in. You hated when you were wrong, and you knew all along that you were in this case. You did love him, which is why it was so damn hard to move past this.

“Tell me, what’s the real reason you haven’t even signed those papers.”

“I just- think about everything I could be giving up on,” you finally admitted. “He’s a good husband, aside from the lies. He’s going to be the most amazing dad.”

You started to cry as you spoke, feeling the pain of knowing that you could be giving up on a lot.

“Yeah he is,” she smiled. “He’s a good man. He’s a massive idiot, but he’s a good man.”

“I just don’t know what to do.”

“If you’re second guessing this decision this much, you have to take time to think it through. I don’t have answers for you, because it’s your life. But, I will say this… you’re rightfully angry about the lie. We’re all angry about that. But, you’re lying to him and to yourself when you say you feel nothing for him. I don’t know, maybe I just feel like lying about not loving someone is worse than what he did.”

“Really? You think he was right to let this happen when he could have stopped this mess before it started?”

“No. But, I sort of believe that things happen for a reason. You both made a stupid decision that night, sure. But, near the end there, you were so happy. Y/N you were thrilled when you found out you were pregnant. You wanted to have a baby with him. Maybe that mistake was the only thing that was going to get you two to that point. Unless you don’t believe in things happening for a reason.”

“I don’t know what to believe in,” you admitted. “I am honestly so confused right now.”

“Well, you gotta figure that out for yourself. I will also say, it’s not fair to ask him to pretend that he’s happy and that things are perfectly okay between you if they’re not. If this is ending, then he has the right to be sad about it, even if that’s publicly.”

“He literally asked me to fake a happy marriage for him. I think he owes me this.”

“A fake happy marriage that turned into an actual happy marriage. Don’t lie and say that there was nothing happy about it.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“You’ve got a decision to make,” she said. “Just- think about what I said. Really think about the reason why you’re so set on a divorce but you still can’t bring yourself to sign those papers. Something is stopping you and you owe it to yourself to find out what that is.”

You hung your head, taking in her words. You knew she was right. There was a reason why you were stopping yourself from ending it the way that you insisted that you wanted to. But even you didn’t know why for sure.

“Oh, and another thing,” Briana started. “That was really shitty of you to talk about going to the ultrasound and not even asking him to be there for it.”

You swallowed hard, feeling your heart stop briefly as tears welled up again. You honestly hadn’t even thought of it at the time and now you suddenly felt like the worst person in the world.

“Bri- I-”

Before you could articulate words, she was stopping you. She held her hand up to cut you off, indicating that she didn’t want to hear whatever lame excuse you were planning on spilling.

“We have dinner to get to,” she said. “I don’t want to hear excuses, because it doesn’t matter to me. We’re gonna drop this conversation right after this last thing that I have to say.”

She stared at you, frightening you with a serious tone in her voice that you were not used to hearing. But, you listened. She obviously had a lot to say about all of this, and while it was definitely not her business, you had to admit that she had good points.

“You don’t have to forgive him. And you don’t have to stay in this marriage. You can also keep lying about your feelings for him if you want. But, you don’t get to leave him out on the baby stuff. That’s not fair”

“Okay,” you said softly.

That was all you could say. She had scared you out of saying much else. You knew that she was right though. You hadn’t purposely meant to speak about baby stuff to Rob as if he had nothing to do with it. That had been unintentional. Now, at least Briana had talked some sense into you by reminding you that it was your responsibility to encourage him to be involved if he wanted to be.


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader’s pregnancy wasn’t going to remain a secret forever… she’s just wishing that this could have all played out differently. A friend tries to talk some sense into her, and she’s mostly annoyed at the way everyone keeps butting in. Even more, she’s annoyed at the fact that secrets don’t seem to remain secret in this group.

**Reader’s POV**

The next morning, you had a lot to think about. You knew you had to make things right with the way you had treated Rob over the whole ultrasound thing. Briana had been right, it wasn’t fair for you to leave him out of the baby stuff.

You also thought a lot about the fact that you hadn’t signed the divorce papers. At first, you really just assumed that you were putting it off because you were too emotional to sign them. You blamed the hormones for making you second guess everything.

Of course, in the beginning, you both knew that this marriage had to end. There was no way that you could stay in an accidental marriage forever. As time went on, you and Rob had decided to stick it out, just because you both admitted that you felt something for the other. You had believed him and you had been honest with him on your feelings. 

You wished that he had never even said anything about that night. While you had no recollection of what had happened, it was even worse to learn later on that he did remember things that he had originally denied. You couldn’t help but to still feel betrayed and tricked. You couldn’t help that you began to question his true intentions here.

On the other hand, Briana was right. If Rob was really as manipulative as you thought he was, why would he come out and say the truth when things between the two of you were so good? Surely he could have held onto that secret for a lot longer if he was most focused on convincing you to stay married to him for the sake of avoiding another divorce.

Your head was dizzy with conflicting thoughts. You knew that you had to sign and file the paperwork, but you also couldn’t lie to yourself about the fact that you loved him. You could say it out loud all you wanted, but inside, you couldn’t stop loving him. That’s what made this whole thing worse for you. Knowing that you loved him but still unsure if anything that came out of his mouth was the truth.

You laid in bed, willing yourself to get up; but already you didn’t feel well and you were exhausted. This weekend was going to be tough.

You picked up your phone and opened Twitter, curious as to what people were saying lately, but mostly just trying to avoid getting out of bed for the day. Your big concern was the fact that you had showed up to a convention with an obvious belly and had been insecure about it for the whole first day. Really, you wanted to know if others had noticed.

It was no surprise to see that people were speculating about it. There wasn’t much aside from a few pictures and a few fans pointing it out. You had done your best to cover it up, but even you could see that it hadn’t gone well.

You sighed as you searched through some tweets that mostly questioned if you were pregnant or not. To your surprise, no one seemed to be saying anything negative about it if you were in fact pregnant. Most of what you saw was that people were happy for you and Rob if you were.

You couldn’t help but smile to yourself as you scrolled through the nice comments, blushing over the way fans insisted that the two of you were perfect for each other and that you would have adorable children together. For the first time in a while, you felt happy.

Your happiness faded quickly when you remembered the situation that you and Rob had put yourselves in. Even now, you wanted to believe him. You wanted to believe that everything up to this point hadn’t been malicious on his part. Still, there was something deep down nagging at you; telling you not to trust him.

You closed the app and tossed your phone aside, taking a deep breath as you realized you were feeling the need to cry. It seemed as if all you ever wanted to do lately was just cry. Honestly, you weren’t even sure why anymore. Maybe it was the hormones, or maybe it was because you still didn’t know why you hadn’t even signed the divorce papers when you were so set on ending this marriage.

It didn’t matter if you were still struggling with what Rob had done, you knew you had to set some things right regardless.

* * *

After you had finally pulled yourself out of bed and got ready for the day, you found Rob in the green room as usual. While a part of you was still angry with him, you knew you had to make at least one thing right between the two of you sooner rather than later.

“Hey,” you said, offering him a small smile as you approached him.

“Hey,” he replied. “How are you? Are you feeling okay? Do you need anything?”

His eyes fell to your stomach and you felt a pang in your chest immediately. You sort of hated that he was being so sweet and attentive, but you also felt a sense of adoration for him considering that he was being that way because you were carrying his child.

“No, I’m fine. I just wanted to talk to you if you have a minute.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“So… I realized that I was kind of a jerk yesterday.”

“You weren’t a jerk,” he began to argue.

“Yeah, I was. I was talking about the baby and the ultrasound as if your feelings didn’t even matter. Look, I’m still very upset with you and I would rather just avoid you right now. But, I also know that I can’t completely remove you from my life at this point.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Stop apologizing,” you demanded. “I need to apologize. I’m sorry for doing that to you. That wasn’t right. I want you to go with me to the ultrasound when we get back to L.A. That is, if you want to be there.”

“Are you kidding?” He asked hopefully. “Of course I want to be there.”

“Good. I’m glad you want to be involved with this.”

“I was actually really upset that you didn’t ask me to go in the first place.”

“I know. I just wasn’t thinking of your feelings. And, I’ll be better. It won’t be easy for me, but I’ll try to involve you in things like that. Sometimes you might have to remind me that I need to do that.”

“Okay,” he said with a smile. “Thank you. I know I don’t deserve much from you right now, but I appreciate this.”

“I just- no matter what happens between us… even if I’m still really angry with you and as this whole lie falls apart; this part is still very real. It’s on both of us. Only if you want to be.”

“I’m not letting you do this alone,” he said softly. “I made a lot of mistakes, but I can’t mess this up as well.”

“Thank you.”

“You know,” he began. “We can still talk about us. I get that we’re in the process of a divorce, and I can’t change your mind about that… but that doesn’t mean that maybe we can’t make something work.”

“Rob,” you cut him off, sighing in frustration. “There’s nothing to talk about. Please, just let it go.”

“I didn’t lie when I said I love you, Y/N.”

He looked at you in defeat, knowing that his words didn’t matter at this point anymore. Still, he continued to make the attempt and a small part of you really did believe him.

You decided against going through it all again. No matter how often you reminded him that this was all an accident and how you felt betrayed and lied to, he never did stop trying. You didn’t even know what his real motive was anymore, and you were too tired to hear it all again.

“Goodbye, Rob,” you said as you turned from him to avoid another emotional display that could either turn into confused tears or another argument.

* * *

You went back to avoiding Rob for most of the day. You had done your part to at least include him in the baby stuff, but just knowing that you were hesitation on the divorce stuff made it awkward to be around him. You kept thinking back to how hard he seemed to fight for this marriage, even if it had never been a real one; and the fact that you finally got him to cave on signing the paperwork and how devastated he looked as he did so, you were filled with guilt over not doing your part. As far as he knew, the paperwork was filed and your divorce was underway. Now, you were the one who wasn’t being honest in this relationship and the thought of it was unsettling.

As you waited backstage for your panel to start later that day, you nervously ran your hand along your belly. You tugged at your sweater, trying everything you could to just make this less noticeable. You were in no way huge yet, but you were definitely self-conscious since people had definitely taken notice already. Perhaps of you could just make yourself look not pregnant right now, people would stop talking.

You were as anxious on stage now as you had been during your very first convention; the same convention that had gotten you into this mess to begin with. You acknowledged Rich, Rob, and the band as they exited the stage; leaving you alone for your panel.

You smiled, still tugging anxiously at your sweater as you addressed the audience. You knew you were being obvious, but you couldn’t help yourself.

“I think we should just jump right into and and I’ll take questions, I guess.,” you started. You turned to your left, trying to pay attention as the first fan asked you a generic question about your character’s purpose on the show this season. You answered, greatly relieved that the first question had been a repeat and actually rather boring.

After a few more questions, your nervousness eased up. Perhaps only a handful of people were talking about the fact that you looked pregnant. Or, perhaps the majority of fans just didn’t want to bring it up out of respect.

Near the end of your panel, Rob, Rich, and the guys made their way quietly onto the stage; cuing you in that your panel was just about over. You contained your excitement over this realization, turning toward the side of the stage.

“Hi,” you smiled sweetly to the next fan waiting in line. “You’re the last question?”

“So, I have to ask, because there’s been a lot of rumors about it lately; are you pregnant?”

It was sudden and blunt and you don’t know why you didn’t see it coming. After the speculation on social media yesterday, you should have prepared yourself for this. You never thought to make sure that volunteers screened questions like this today. You never even imagined anyone would bring it up at all.

Now, you were a deer in headlights; stunned as you let the question roll around in your head.

You could easily deny it. You denied things all the time when you felt that the questions asked weren’t appropriate. It was easy enough to do.

But, you also knew that your baby bump was already obvious. You knew that if you denied it now, you would be called out on it later when it was something that you really couldn’t deny anymore.

“Is that what people are saying?” You asked into the microphone, forcing a smile to play off that you weren’t uncomfortable. You glanced over to Rob quickly; who could only stand there, head hanging as he tried to avert his eyes from everyone.

There were some shouts and cheers from the crowd, indicating that a lot of people were thinking it was true.

“Well, you know that I got married not too long ago,” you explained. There were more cheers and shouts and you paused briefly. “To a man that I hardly knew,” you chuckled as you looked over at Rob.

Just as you looked at him, his eyes found yours. He looked pained all of the sudden as he waited for what you would say. You felt it then; the hurt that you kept feeling every time you took those divorce papers out when you really thought you were in the mood to sign them. You didn’t even know if the feeling was coming from remembering what he had done to hurt you, or if it really was from the fact that you knew that you didn’t want to end things with him.

“So,” you continued as you looked toward the crowd, “maybe it’s a little sudden… maybe it’s too sudden… but, yes. Rob and I are expecting.”

You waited as the fans applauded and cheered again. Your heart was racing, your head spinning as you forced yourself not to cry right there. It wasn’t even something that you had fully discussed with Rob. In fact, it wasn’t something that you had completely accepted yourself. You knew that this was not the best way to announce this. But, you also knew that you couldn’t avoid it for much longer. Maybe it was best to just do it before you actually filed the divorce papers.

You looked to Rob again, hoping that he wouldn’t be too upset that you had just announced this without talking to him first. He gave you a forced smile, but you still saw the hurt in his eyes.

Knowing that you had to keep playing nice so that people wouldn’t have something else to talk about, you made your way toward him and hesitantly wrapped your arms around him to embrace him. He accepted, and held you tight, placing a soft kiss to your cheek as he did so.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered into his ear as you held him.

“Don’t be sorry,” he replied. “People were going to find out.”

He pulled away from you and moved to his microphone, starting to sing as the band played you off.

You exited the stage and hurried back to the green room, not wanting to stick around to see how Rob was going to handle what came next. You felt even worse over the fact that you had spilled about the pregnancy and left him to deal with the aftermath of the news. The rest of the con wasn’t going to be easy for him considering he was the one who was trying so hard to stay in this marriage and he was the one who was so torn up over you being pregnant while you were in the process of leaving him.

* * *

You decided to attend SNS that night, even though you had been pretty miserable and exhausted all day. Normally, given the situation, you’d do what you could to avoid Rob. You felt that you had been nice enough to fix the whole baby situation by involving him in that at least, but even that made things difficult for you.

You wished that you could do what you would do with any ex you ever had; remove him from your life and move on. The fact that you were having his child certainly complicated things though.

There was also the fact that literally everyone knew that you and Rob were having a baby, and no one knew that this marriage had fallen apart from the beginning. In an attempt to save face, you figured it was better to continue to act as if you were happy with him.

“Wow, you came?” Rob said as more of a question when he saw you wandering around the greenroom.

“Oh, yeah, I figured I’d check it out tonight.”

“Didn’t think you’d want to after everything.”

“Yeah, I don’t know,” you sighed. “I figured that I should make an appearance for my husband considering I just spilled about us having a baby.”

“Ah,” he chuckled. “We’re still putting on a show. I nearly forgot.”

“Just for a while longer.”

“I don’t really know what you want from me, to be honest. Am I supposed to just keep my distance like you’ve been wanting me to? Or; am I playing the doting husband, soon-to-be father role?”

“I- I really don’t know what to do at this point,” you said honestly.

“Well, maybe you weren’t wrong about the whole ‘playing nice until this is all over’ bit. Might look better for us if we just fake it for now.”

“Yeah, we’re good at faking it.”

“Most of it,” he said with a soft smile. “But, not all of it was fake.”

“See, you’re so good at being fake, I almost believed you,” you replied. You bit your lip, wishing you hadn’t said it out loud when you saw his reaction. He was really good at looking hurt and sad over all of this.

He opened his mouth to protest, but before he got the chance to say anything, he was being called away to head to the stage.

“Good luck,” you added as he started to walk away. His eyes stayed on you as followed the guys, still looking as if he had something to say.

* * *

Watching him perform was something else. You had seen him sing before, but tonight he seemed to be extra into it and extra emotional. It shouldn’t have affected you at all to see him this way, but it did.

You stood backstage with everyone else, watching the show as it was projected on a screen. The entire band was fantastic tonight, every performer was giving a great show, and Rob especially was giving the performance of his life.

As the band moved through songs, you felt a connection to each of them. Rob never came outright and explained that any of the songs were about you or about what was currently going on in your lives, but you understood that each song was carefully selected to showcase exactly what he was feeling at this point in time.

Maybe you still didn’t know him very well, but you could read him easily. He was always an emotional performer, and tonight you knew that he was definitely going through a lot.

You tried to enjoy the show, taking solace in the moments when the other actors joined the band for songs that didn’t feel as if they were directed at you. You actually smiled as you watched Rich and the guys play ‘Copperhead Road’, applauding as they finished up and Rich made his exit.

Rich bounded offstage, and immediately made his way to you when he noticed you standing there alone..

“Great job out there,” you said.

“Thanks,” he smiled in return. “I have to admit though, I’m surprised to see you here.”

“What? I can’t come support my husband?”

“Well, sure you can, but is that why you’re here?”

“Look, I’m still a part of this show and I’m still invited to conventions. I also still happen to be married to your friend. It’s just something we all have to deal with for a while longer.”

“Yeah, he said you filed for divorce finally.”

“I think you knew better than anyone else that it would happen.”

“I did think that,” he admitted. “At first anyway.”

“You of all people should be thrilled. I can’t say that I’ve ever had anyone so involved in one of my relationships before, even if it was fake. You tried for a long time to make us see the mistake we were making. I should have listened to you.”

“I just didn’t want to see Rob ruin his life. I hardly know you, but I also didn’t want Rob to mess up your life.”

“Like I said, we should have listened to you,” you grinned.

“Still, I probably could have been nicer about it all.”

“We all make mistakes,” you replied.

“I just wanted to see him happy,” he sighed. “It’s been a long time since any of us have seen him happy. I just knew that after everything that happened in Vegas, it was just going to get worse.”

“I apologize for my part in that. I never wanted for any of us to end up here. Please know that I wasn’t actively trying to ruin his life.”

“No, I know that. Turns out that he was the one who jumped head first into this, knowing exactly what he was doing.”

Rich’s reminder of Rob’s memory of that night made your stomach turn. No matter how soft you were for Rob, how often you considered accepting his apology and letting that mistake go; hearing out loud that he had gotten you both into this situation upset you to the point of almost hating him.

“Is there a point to this conversation?” You asked, now annoyed.

“I just wanted to let you know that I’m sorry,” he replied. “I’m sorry for how I acted and I’m sorry for interfering.”

“Don’t be sorry. You were the only smart one. I wish other people had interfered.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” you said, choking back tears. “If everyone had acted the way that you did, maybe one of us would have come to our senses. We could have annulled this before it was too late, we could have avoided pretending that we had feelings for each other, and maybe I would be pregnant and about to be alone. I sort of wish you hadn’t stopped interfering.”

“I only interfered because I wanted him to be happy.” Rich replied. “I stopped interfering when I realized that he was finally happy.”

You turned quickly to face him; tears threatening to spill. You stared at him, unable to even say anything because you knew that if you tried to speak, you would lose it.

“You made him happy,” he continued. “It took some time; and the two of you are a mess… but he really does love you.”

“He’s pretty convincing when he lies,” you said as you began to cry. “I don’t feel so bad for being fooled for this long now that I know he’s able to trick his own friends into believing him.”

“Well,” Rich shrugged, “maybe he’s that good of an actor; or maybe you’re just really good at denial.”

“We’re done here,” you stated.

If there was one thing you were, in fact, really good at, it was ending a conversation when it got uncomfortable. You had been doing it for a while now; walking away when things became too real and too complicated. It was easier to ignore the truth. It was easier to just pretend that this entire thing wasn’t confusing.

You decided to walk away from him, just as you continued to do with Rob. You got a few steps away from Rich, your back to him when you heard him call out to you.

“One thing, Y/N…”

You stopped briefly in your tracks, rolling your eyes at his insistence to bother you. You didn’t turn to face him, you just waited.

“He was willing to be honest about something that he knew you would hate him for,” he began. “I just wish you could be honest about your feelings for him.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” You asked angrily as you finally turned to face him.

“You just- you can’t tell somebody that you love them just to take it back when things get difficult.”

“You’re right,” you replied. “I never should have said it in the first place when I didn’t mean it. I guess I was just hoping to make the best of a shitty situation.”

“See, I don’t believe you,” he grinned.

“I don’t love him,” you said firmly. “I wish none of this had ever happened.”

“Then why haven’t you filed for the divorce?”

You pulled back, shocked that he had said it. The only person who knew about your hesitation and confusion over actually filing the paperwork was Briana, and that was only because she went snooping through your belongings.

“The longer you hang out with all of us, the sooner you’ll realize that we’re like a bunch of teenage girls who gossip to each other,” Rich explained. “Especially when we’re worried about each other.”

“I’ll keep the fact that I have no privacy around you people in mind.”

“Look, do what it is that you need to do,” he said. “I’m not judging you, but keep in mind that he loves you and this is all really hard on him especially since he’s scared shitless about being a dad. He thinks you’re already in the process of getting a divorce, Y/N.”

“I know,” you said softly.

“Just sign the papers. Sign them and file them,” he pleaded. “You’re doing exactly what he did to you in the first place.”

“This is not the same,” you replied, voice raising as you became upset over the comparison.

“Isn’t it? He lied to you for his own benefit, and you’re lying to him for whatever reason it is that you have.”

“I know” you reiterated. “I don’t know why I’m doing this. I’m just having a lot of emotions over the fact that my fake marriage needs to end, and I don’t know how to handle it.”

“Well, I’m just saying… if you didn’t care about him even just a little, it shouldn’t be that hard to end something that isn’t real.”

You tried to think of something to say in response, but Rich was already walking away from you. He moved past you, making a point of joining the rest of the group who was all gathered in another area backstage. You were left alone again.

Rich’s words played in your mind, now making you question everything even more. These people had a way of saying pretty smart things that threw you off and then leaving you to think about all of your choices by yourself.

You really hated that they were always right.


	28. Part 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob and Reader are still on the rocks. Rob is trying to be helpful. Reader definitely doesn’t love him though, so why does she keep kissing him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't written in a while and I'm rusty. Be kind please.

**Rob’s POV**

Rob knew better than to push too much more when it came to Y/N. She had done enough by simply acknowledging him and his role in the current situation, that was more than he could ask for given the way he had screwed up.

There were bigger things to deal with now. Not only was he still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that he was finally going to be a dad; he and Y/N, well mostly Y/N, were choosing to be parents separately.

This was the last thing he ever wanted. If he could get her to understand that he loved her and that this was all real for him, he would do what he could. But, he also realized that Y/N didn’t want to listen anymore. Could he really blame her?

Rob sat in the green room that morning, feeling a little bit better with things considering that Y/N had actually shown up to the concert last night and they had actually gotten along most of the day. Even more, Rob was pleasantly surprised that Y/N had announced her pregnancy so seamlessly, and still managed to let him know that she was willing to let him be a part of it.

The fans had been supportive so far. Even though their shotgun wedding had taken some people by surprise, fans still remained supportive. It was really no surprise that they were supportive for this.

He was keeping a close eye on Y/N, who was sitting alone on a couch, mostly avoiding everyone.

She didn’t seem to be her usual self this morning, and Rob wondered if he had done something else to upset her.

“I think your wife isn’t feeling well,” Billy pointed out suddenly, breaking Rob from his thoughts.

“You think so?”

“Well, she is pregnant. Morning sickness is a thing.”

“Oh yeah,” Rob mumbled. “She’s definitely had some morning sickness…”

“Maybe you should check to see if she needs anything.”

“You think it’s my place to do that right now?”

“I don’t know man,” Billy shrugged. “All I do know is that she obviously isn’t feeling great and it’s partially your responsibility.”

“Yeah, I guess it is.”

“Also, I know that you love each other. You need to take care of the people you love.”

“She doesn’t love me,” Rob reminded him. “I fucked up.”

“Whatever you say,” he replied. “Still, you should check on her.”

Rob didn’t respond. He just watched Y/N, knowing that he very much wanted to check on her and do whatever he could to help her feel better, but it was complicated.

A large part of him was very much the doting husband and soon-to-be father; another part of him kept reminding him that Y/N wanted nothing to do with him. At what point would he be overstepping the boundaries that Y/N very clearly wanted?

He decided that she looked miserable enough that he would risk pissing her off by checking in on her though.

“Hey, you alright?” He asked carefully when he finally built up the courage to go to her.

Y/N glanced up at him from her spot on the couch, giving him a weak smile.

“You know,” she began quietly, “when friends who have kids talked about morning sickness and how miserable they were during it, I thought they were just being babies. I have a whole new level of respect for all moms.”

“What do you need?” He asked in return as he took a seat next to her.

“Really, don’t worry about it,” she replied. “I don’t expect you to take care of me.”

“No, I know… but I want to. That’s my baby,” he added as he cautiously reached a hand over to her. He caught her stare briefly as he hover a hand over her stomach. She didn’t object, so he placed a gentle hand on her, still feeling overwhelming emotion just thinking about how that was his child in there.

“I appreciate it,” she said softly. “But just know that I really don’t expect you to do anything.”

“So, what will help?” He asked, ignoring her insistence.

“I don’t know. Something for nausea maybe.”

“Let me see what I can find,” he smiled.

Once Rob had done a bit of research, he was able to track down a place nearby that had what he was looking for. When he found Y/N again, he grinned as he handed her a cup of ginger tea, proud of himself that he was able to at least do this for her.

“What is it?” She asked as she took the cup. She sniffed at the drink, frowning as she looked at him.

“Ginger tea. It’s supposed to help. And it’s good for you.”

“I hate ginger,” she muttered.

“Well, it might help. Or, you could just go with being sick all day.”

Y/N grumbled slightly as she carefully took a sip of the hot drink, scrunching up her nose in disgust as she did so.

Rob chuckled at her, pleased that she was at least accepting his help.

His help didn’t stop for the rest of the day. He constantly checked on her, reminding her that he was present and willing to help in any way he could. At first, she seemed weary of accepting his offers, but by the end of the day she had eased up a bit, even asking him for things directly.

Rob was pleased to be able to do something to make things easier for her, no matter what it was. He was certain he couldn’t win her affection at this point, but there was no harm in trying.

***

At the end of a very long day, Rob waited for Y/N in the green room while she was finishing her autographs. He was done for the day, and really very tired, but he wanted to make sure he had the chance to check in on her again. She had had a rough day, and although he did all he could to make things easier for her, he still had to be sure that she was at least feeling better.

Just as he was close to dozing off on the couch, the greenroom door opened and he looked up as she walked into the room.

“Hey,” he said as he stood up to greet her. “How are you? We’re autographs okay?”

“I’m actually feeling a lot better,” she smiled. “Thank you for everything today. It all really helped.”

“That’s what I’m here for. Anything that I can do to make this easier, I’ll do it.”

“You shouldn’t say things like that,” she said almost teasingly. “A girl could get used to this kind of treatment. I might take advantage of it.”

Rob felt his heart sink. Of course she would be taking advantage of his kindness, especially after everything he had done to piss her off. This wasn’t what he wanted at all. In fact, he had hoped that by showing her how good he could be to her, she might forgive him. He secretly hoped that she might reconsider everything if he just remained present despite her decision.

He chose to ignore the fact that she was using him. Sure, she might be doing that now; but maybe eventually that could all change.

“I’ll walk to back to your room,” he offered.

“That’s not necessary. No need to do things that you’re not obligated to do. Go out with your friends,” she began, waving him off as she gathered her belongings. “Go do single guy stuff. You’re not really tied down to me.”

“We’re still married,” he reminded her.

He watched her as she turned to face him. It was as if she had been startled by his reminder. Her breath caught, and she had a slight look of fear in her eyes. Why? He couldn’t be sure, but he thought her reaction was strange nonetheless.

“Besides,” he added when she didn’t respond, “you want people to not get suspicious right now… it’s not hurting anything by the two of us still being seen together.”

“Fine,” she muttered. “Walk me back to my room.”

They walked in silence. Rob didn’t know what to say anymore, and he felt as if Y/N really didn’t want to talk to him in general.

She paused at her hotel room door, fumbling in her bag for the key card. Rob waited, wanting to make sure she made it in safely. Once she finally had the key and was focused on opening the door, Rob figured that was his cue to go.

“Have a safe flight home tomorrow,” he said. “I’ll see you when I see you I guess.”

“Baby appointment,” she reminded him.

“Yeah, I’ll be there.”

“You’ll pick me up?”

“Yeah, I can do that. If you want me to.”

“I do. I don’t want to go alone.”

“Okay,” he smiled. “I’ll pick you up then.”

He made the movement to turn from her when she reached out and took a firm hold of his hand to stop him. The contact made him nervous, but mostly it made him yearn for her even more than he already had been. He stared at their hands for a moment before glancing up at her with a questioning look.

She looked just as nervous as he felt. Actually, she looked almost terrified.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but to Rob’s dismay, she said nothing at all. Perhaps there wasn’t anything left for either of them to say anymore. He could tell her the same things over and over again and it wouldn’t matter. Maybe she realized that reminding him that this was all a mistake and she wished it had never happened was pointless too.

She kept a hold of him, still not saying whatever it was that she had wanted to say. Instead, she sighed and stared at the ground. Rob waited for her to let go of him so that he could leave before she found another reason to yell at him.

Her grasp on his hand only tightened, and before he knew it, she was tugging on him, pulling him closer to her. Unsure of what she was doing, he decided to just go with it. When she had him flush to her body, she let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning in to rest her head against his chest.

Rob’s heartbeat quickened and he was confused. Although he hesitated slightly, he carefully wrapped his own arms around her, holding her close. He didn’t know what this was exactly, but there was no way he could deny this closeness with her.

He closed his eyes as they held each other, letting out a breath as he let his face rest against her head. The feel of her baby bump, their baby, against him only made his heart ache more. How did they get this so wrong?

He wanted her to say something. It didn’t matter if it was what she had wanted to say before, or if it was just a simple ‘goodnight’, he needed her to say something. He needed to know if there was ever going to be a chance for them. It was wishful thinking on his part though, he knew that. But, it was moments like this that kept him holding on to that tiny sliver of hope.

Just as he attempted to speak, she pulled back from him, staring up at him with watery eyes.

“Please don’t cry,” he begged. “I don’t know what I did this time, but I hate seeing you cry.”

She didn’t respond. Instead, she moved her hands up, now resting them on his neck as she just stared at him for a moment. Before he could react, she had pulled him toward her, closing her eyes as she pressed her lips against his.

Rob froze, now very confused by what was going on. Her words immediately popped into his head, the ones about taking advantage of him, and he considered ending whatever this was before it progressed. But, the way her lips felt against his as she urged him to give her what she wanted clouded his senses.

He kissed her back. He gripped onto her body, holding her closer to him as he let himself go. This was all he really wanted. Why it was happening in the first place, he didn’t know. He also didn’t care.

He thought that perhaps things would be okay. Maybe she did really love him. Maybe she’d reconsider things and they could actually be together. Maybe she had forgiven him.

Y/N gripped her hands into his hair, enticing a small moan from him. He kissed her harder, still not able to hold back on how much he wanted her. She broke away from him just then, looking at him as her breaths came in short gasps.

“Come in,” she offered with a hopeful smile.

Rob glanced between her and her hotel room door, realizing what she was offering. Every ounce of him was ready to go there, except for that echo of her voice inside his head reminding him of what this was.

“No,” he said simply.

Y/N’s smile faded quickly, and was replaced with a concerned frown.

“What do you mean, no?”

“I can’t,” he began. “What are you even doing right now?”

“I was kissing my husband,” she replied. “I thought he could stay the night.”

Rob pushed back the anger he felt as he realized she most certainly was doing just what he thought.

“You can’t do this.,” he replied in frustration.

Sure, he probably deserved it, but couldn’t let her use him anymore, not when he was in love with her. It would be nice to be with her again, but he was only going to get hurt in the end. Their entire ‘relationship’ had been nothing but the two of them hurting each other, at least he was trying to make that stop. He didn’t want to hurt her anymore, and he deeply regretted all of the things that he had done to hurt her in the past. At the same time, he also couldn’t allow her to hurt him.

“What?”

“None of this ever should have happened. We both know that. We just keep making it worse,” he choked out. “I can’t do this anymore.”

“Rob…” she began as she reached for his hand again.

This time, he pulled away, not wanting her to touch him.

“If I can’t be with you, then I won’t be with you,” he said flatly. “I care about you too much to keep pretending.”

Again, she looked almost shocked by his denial of her. She looked as if she wanted to say something else, but he didn’t give her the chance to. He turned from her again and walked away.

“I’ll see you for the appointment,” he said without even turning back to look at her.

No matter how badly he wanted to be with her again, he knew it would be hell on his heart to keep having her that way without ever actually being able to keep her.

**Back home- Reader’s POV**

You had tried to forget the events of that last night at the convention. You had been humiliated by Rob’s refusal of you, and even more, you were angry at yourself for all of the things that you couldn’t bring yourself to say.

This was all far too complicated, and you just wished that none of it had ever happened. You wished you would have never met him, but glancing down at your growing bump, you knew you’d never be able to forget him.

You had chosen to avoid him for the first few days back home, knowing that he was angry at you because he thought you were using him. Actually, you knew damn well that that was exactly what it looked like. You had made the joke about taking advantage of him, and then you stupidly kissed him. It wasn’t that you wanted to complicate things further, or lead him on, or use him; that particular weekend made you realize that you still loved him. The only problem was that the two of you were so complicated, you didn’t know how to tell him that you had made a mistake by leaving him. Also, there was the fact that you had lied to him about the divorce papers, which were coincidentally still sitting in your bag unsigned by you.

Today, you were mostly annoyed with the fact that it was baby appointment day and Rob had made no attempt to remind you that he was, in fact, still going to pick you up. You wondered if he had reconsidered going to the appointment at all.

After an hour or so of pacing your house nervously, you decided to call him yourself. The last thing you really wanted was to hear his voice or even see him, because you knew it would break your heart; but you also really didn’t want to do this alone.

“Rob,” you stated when you heard him finally answer your call. “Where are you?”

“I’m at home,” he replied. He already sounded slightly annoyed that you were calling him, but you really didn’t care right now.

“Why are you at home?” You asked. “You’re the one who wanted to be involved. I told you I had an appointment today and you insisted on picking me up and going with me.”

“Yeah, I know I did…”

“Then what are you doing?” You exclaimed. “Do you or do you not want to be involved? Because I have an appointment, and you’re not here yet.”

“Will you calm down?” He asked with a sigh.

“Don’t tell me to calm down,” you snapped. “I’m very upset.”

“Yeah, I can tell.”

“And you wonder why we’re divorcing,” you added, not even regretting the hurtful words this time. “I knew I couldn’t trust you.”

“Y/N,” he said firmly, “Knock it off. Your appointment isn’t until eleven, right?”

“Yeah, at least you remember the time. Too bad you can’t remember to pick me up.”

“It is literally seven a.m.,” Rob grumbled. “Why are you yelling at me four hours before the appointment?”

“What?” You mumbled in return. You pulled your phone from your ear to look at your clock. Sure enough, Rob was right.

“I am not going to let you down,” he began calmly as you put your phone back to your ear. “I won’t forget you, I’m not going to bail… but I do not need to pick you up four hours early.”

“I’m sorry, I swear it seemed later. I’m just really nervous,” you admitted.

“Yeah, I’m nervous too.”

“You are?”

“Hey, this is all new to me as well,” he chuckled.

“I just- never thought I’d be a single mom, you know? I never imagined that I’d get myself into a situation like this.”

“Trust me, I know.”

***

As promised, Rob picked you up just before your appointment. You drove to the clinic in silence, something that was becoming the norm for the two of you, and you immediately felt as if your presence was not wanted with him. He never once looked at you or attempted to make small talk. It was as if he was just doing this because he had to, and maybe that’s exactly how he felt about it.

“Baby is doing great, has a strong heartbeat,” the doctor smiled as the three of you kept your eyes glued to the ultrasound screen. “Everything looks perfect.”

You let out a breath that you had been holding in, relieved that everything was okay. You hadn’t let it be known to most people, but you really were nervous about the whole thing.

“We should be able to tell what your having at your next appointment.”

“Really?” You asked, still in awe that you had just seen your tiny baby today. You glanced at Rob, who had said nothing the entire time. He didn’t look directly at you and you felt uncomfortable by the way he had been acting. Even at the worst points in your fake marriage, you had never seen him act this way.

“Yeah,” she chuckled. “I mean, if you want to know the sex, we’ll be able to find out.”

“Great,” you replied. “Thank you.”

The doctor left you and Rob alone and you made quick work of pulling yourself together. Neither of you spoke, and although you had a lot that you wanted to say, you decided against it. For some reason, Rob was giving off a weird vibe, almost as if he didn’t even want to be here. You assumed he was regretting everything completely now, and you didn’t want to face that truth if he were. 

***

“Are you hungry?” Rob asked as the two of you got into the car.

“Come on, do I really have to answer that?” You smiled, grateful that he was actually speaking now.

He shrugged, indicating that he really didn’t know. He didn’t even crack a smile, and your chest tightened as you realized that he was most definitely not excited about any of this. You suddenly felt stupid for feeling the excitement that you did today. Something about seeing your baby made it all very real for you, and you really did feel a sense of joy over being pregnant. Now, with the way Rob was acting, your excitement had faded quickly.

“I’m pregnant and I’m always starving,” you replied.

“Let me feed you.”

“It’s okay. You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to. I can’t do much to make all of this easier on you, but I can at least make sure you’re fed.”

You nodded, agreeing to having lunch with him.

Rob remained stoic as he drove. Even as you attempted to make small talk, his body language made you uncomfortable. You talked a bit about the appointment, and then asked him if he was hoping for a boy or a girl.

“I don’t care,” he shrugged.

For the first time through all of this, you really felt as if you’d be on your own from here on out. It was obvious now that he didn’t want to be here.

“At what point are you going to back out of this?” You asked suddenly. It was meant to be a silent question, one that you imagined asking him when you realized he was not thrilled about this. For some reason, it came out without you even realizing that you were saying it out loud.

“What?” He asked sharply.

Instead of denying that you had meant anything by it, you figured you should just get it out there since it was bothering you so much.

“You’re here for this now,” you began, “and I appreciate that you were here for me today, even if you didn’t want to be. But, I need to know when you’re going to decide to walk away from this completely so I can be prepared.”

He pulled back in surprise, almost as if he had no idea what you were talking about.

“Y/N, I told you I was here for this. I’ll be at every appointment, I’ll be there when our baby is born, if you’ll let me be there. That’s my baby, I’m here for this.”

“Yeah,” you muttered. “You were there. But, maybe I don’t want you here, especially when you clearly don’t want to be.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“You’re only sticking around because you don’t want to look bad.”

“Oh my god, Y/N,” he breathed out in frustration. He ran a hand through his hair, before gripping both hands onto the steering wheel as he steadied himself. He seemed frustrated.

“Is that not it?” You asked. “Did you not show up today because you would look bad otherwise?”

“I showed up because we’re having a baby,” he spat.

“Then why do I get the feeling that you don’t want to be here?” You asked. “Why was there no interest from you?”

“What do you want me to say, Y/N? You want me to lie and tell you that this is the perfect situation and I’m ecstatic? You want me to say that I was thrilled to be in that room, experiencing that with my soon-to-be ex-wife?”

“I don’t want you to lie to me anymore.”

“I’m sorry if I’m not handling this the way you want me to, but I’m trying.”

“Do you know how lucky you are to be the one who could just walk away from this if you wanted to?” You asked. “Every day I think about that. How you can just be gone one day, taking no responsibility, leaving me to do this on my own.”

“I’m not going to do that.”

“But you could,” you reminded him.

“I know I could.”

“Then why don’t you?” You pressed. “We are clearly not meant to be together, much less meant to put up with each other. Why won’t you leave?”

“Why are you trying to force me to leave?” He asked, raising his voice now. He seemed irritated, and with good reason.

You pursed your lips together, realizing that you were making this worse. Of course he didn’t have to be thrilled about the situation, but you also didn’t want him to stick around if he really didn’t want to.

“We’re having a child together,” he continued. “I’m not walking away from that. So, please, stop trying to make me feel like I shouldn’t be here.”

You stayed quiet for a moment. He was right. You were trying to push him away. Not because you felt as if he didn’t want to be here for your child, but because you couldn’t just tell him what you wanted to tell him.

“Will you please just take me home?” You asked finally.

“What about lunch?”

“I’m not hungry anymore.”

“I didn’t mean to yell,” he said. “I just- this sucks. I fucked up so bad, and so did you…”

“I know. Just take me home please.”

After a car ride home that seemed to take an eternity, Rob still made a point of walking you to your door. It didn’t matter if you were a jerk to him, he would always remain a decent guy.

“Are you sure you don’t need anything?” He asked as the two of you stood on the porch.

“I’m okay, really,” you replied. “I just- don’t want to keep upsetting you and that’s all I seem to be doing when I’m around you.”

“I’m just upset with the entire situation, Y/N.”

“Me too. I get it.”

“Just- will you stop trying to push me away completely?” He asked. “I get that I don’t deserve forgiveness or anything, but I’m really trying here. I’m trying to be a good almost dad, but I need you to let me be that.”

“You’re right. I also really need you through this.”

“And I’m here,” he said with a soft smile. “I want to be here.”

Without really thinking about it, you made a movement that you had grown so accustomed to making, one that you knew Rob would probably not like right now.

You moved in anyway, pressing your body against his as you rested your head against his chest.

You felt him hesitate before finally wrapping his arms around you. You breathed out as he embraced you, closing your eyes as you enjoyed the moment of being with him like this again.

You then felt him place a kiss to the top of your head.

“You’re gonna be such an amazing dad,” you said softly, breathing in his scent as you relaxed against him.

“I hope so,” he muttered. “There’s got to be one thing that I don’t screw up.”

You pulled back from him then, looking up at him as he decided if he should keep holding you or let you go in case you had had enough of this.

Before he could come to a decision, you reached up and took his face in your hands, running your fingertips through his beard before pulling him toward you. You hoped that you could show him what you were feeling without having to talk about it. You didn’t know how to bring up the fact that you loved him and that you wanted to stay with him. After everything that you had put him through, that he had put you through, you didn’t even know if the two of you could ever make this work. Regardless, you kissed him anyway, just hoping that he understood your confusion and your want for him.

You knew you shouldn’t be kissing him right now, especially after how badly the last kiss had gone. Everything inside of you told you to stop, but you couldn’t even if you tried. Almost as soon as your lips met his, he was pushing you away though. You whimpered at the loss of connection, giving him a pleading glance as you tried to think of what else you could do.

“Y/N?” He breathed out as he tried to regain himself.

“I know,” you said in return. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“I can’t-” he began, pausing as he bit his lip. You could tell that he was feeling confused by this; and even more, he seemed sad. “I can’t do this. Please don’t do this.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Just because I was a jerk, doesn’t make it okay for you to take advantage of the way I feel about you.”

“I’m not trying to.”

“Look, I know you think that I’m lying about everything, but I’m not. I love you and I can’t do this knowing that you hate me. We can’t put on a show like this anymore.”

“Rob-”

“No. I’m here for you. Whatever you need. I’m here for our baby, and I want to stay involved in that. But, I can’t do this with you, not again.”

“Please-“

He cut you off again, not even giving you a chance to piece together what you wanted to say to him.

“Just let me be your ex-husband,” he said. “Leave it at that.”

He walked away then, leaving you alone on your doorstep. Your heart was heavy, your feet heavier as they couldn’t even move even though you wanted to go after him. Maybe he was right though. Maybe you were only taking advantage of having him present still despite everything. Maybe what you had been feeling for him wasn’t love at all. Given your ever-changing moods, it was hard for you to even know what it was that you wanted.

So, you watched him leave.

***

You spent most of the evening eating ice cream as you lounged on the couch in pajamas. You were drowning your sorrows the nay way that you could currently, crying as you pretended to lose yourself in some rom-com on TV. It wasn’t even the movie or the hormones at this point that had you sobbing, it was the mess of emotions you were feeling over the situation.

The longer you felt bad for yourself, the more you thought. You thought back to the day after the Vegas incident; how panicked you were and how neither you nor Rob knew what to do. You thought about the stupid decision to not annul the marriage and to just go with it for a while for the sake of saving yourselves the embarrassment. Surely that had all been a giant disaster.

But then you started to think about the other things; those tiny almost insignificant moments in your fake marriage that had somehow gotten you to this place right now.

You recalled the butterflies you felt when Rob swooped in and moved you through a slow dance to that particular song when you moved into his place. You remembered how you thought that you should kiss him in that moment, but didn’t.

You thought about meeting his family; how wonderful and loving they were, how much they adored you. You smiled when you remembered how close he had gotten to kissing you that night before you were interrupted.

You remembered the way he had stepped in to protect you from the creep at the bar. In the end, he had received quite the beating, but insisted that it was necessary he protect you.

Even all of the kissing ‘for show’ and the times you spent together intimately were good memories for you.

You thought back to the therapy sessions; how stupid they seemed at first, but how they had actually helped in the long run. Those were probably the only times that you and Rob were ever one hundred percent honest with each other. He had told you that he loved you there. And you admitted that you loved him as well.

The only difference now was that Rob still insisted that he loved you, but you were so afraid of being lied to and hurt again, you denied that you ever really did love him. That was the most painful thing for you.

You had been so sure that it would be easier to just deny your feelings and go back to the original plan. You thought divorcing him and escaping that entire lie would be the easiest route. You knew you were wrong though. The past few weeks had been anything but easy.

All you had ever wanted was a normal life with a man that you loved. You wanted a family and a real marriage. You wanted stability and you wanted it all to be easy.

As you set aside your now empty container of ice cream, a realization came to you.

You had all of that. Well, most of it. Maybe you didn’t have it in the exact way that you wanted it, but it was there.

You had a man that you loved. You loved Rob. Even if you denied it now, you knew how you felt. You had a marriage. It was far from perfect, and although it was accidental, it still had it’s good moments. You were going to have a family. Certainly it wasn’t in the way that you expected it to happen, but it was still happening. You had everything that you ever really wanted; it was just not perfect like you wanted it to be.

Everything that you had talked yourself into previously no longer mattered. You no longer cared about how all of this had happened, and you didn’t care about the fact that he had lied. You knew that his part in that night wasn’t intentional, you just used it as a reason to back out of all of this.

At this point, you knew that you had hurt him making him believe that you didn’t love him. If only he knew how difficult it had been for you to do that.

You quickly grabbed your bag and your keys and headed for the door. Maybe you couldn’t make things right, and maybe you were setting yourself up for nothing but disappointment from him, but you were tired of the back and forth between the two of you.

For too long you had let the advice and words of everyone around you get to you. For too long you had attempted to make yourself stop feeling the way that you did about him. Now, you knew you had to stop. You had to let him know the truth, even if he didn’t believe you.

***

You wasted no time in banging on his door when you arrived at his house. You were anxious and ready to say the things that you should’ve said all along. You weren’t sure why everything had hit you all at once like this, but you were grateful that it did. Now, you could only hope that he was willing to listen at least.

“Y/N?” Rob said as he finally opened the door, “what are you doing here? Are you okay?”

He took a step toward you, mostly concerned that you were suddenly here, holding back the urge to cry right in front of him.

You choked back the tears, realizing that you were panicking again. You opened your mouth to speak, no words coming out. It was easy to think that you were ready to say what needed to be said, it was a lot harder to actually act on it.

Right now, having him in front of you again, all of your fears came back. What of he really had done all of this maliciously? What if he was still lying when he said he loved you? What if you took him back and he hurt you again?

Those fears left you literally speechless, but you still knew that you had to at least give him a chance. You opted out of trying to speak right now, and instead you shoved the papers that you were holding against his chest.

“What’s this?” He asked.

“Here, take them before I change my mind.”

He grabbed the crumbled papers and studied them for a moment. You watched as his confusion took over, looking up at you as if to ask you what was going on.

“These are our divorce papers,” he pointed out. “Why are you giving them to me? Why do you still have them?”

“I never signed them,” you explained as tears began to fall down your face.

“I can see that,” he muttered. “Why not? Also, why did you tell me that everything was going through? You told me we were in the process of divorcing.”

“I know I did,” you responded. “I was too afraid to tell you that I hadn’t signed them.”

“Why didn’t you sign them?”

“Every time I went to do it, I just got really sad. I couldn’t make myself do it.”

“This is what you wanted, Y/N.”

“No, it was never what I wanted. I just wanted to believe that not everything that happened was a mistake. I wanted for you to have never told me about that night.”

“I had to,” he sighed. “I couldn’t live with carrying that lie around, not when I just wanted us to work out.”

“Okay, so we both carried around some lies. Lies that we should have been honest about from the beginning. This was my lie. I never signed them. We’re not even close to being divorced.”

“Why would you lie about that?” He asked. “Why did you make me sign them when you weren’t even going to do it?”

“I love you, okay?” you blurted out. “That’s the only thing that kept stopping me from signing those. Despite everything that you did, I still love you.”

“Y/N…” he dropped his hands to his side, looking at you almost sympathetically for a moment before speaking again.


	29. Part 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob and Reader wonder about how things could have been; but, perhaps their mistakes aren’t so bad.

**Reader’s POV**

“Why are you doing this?” He asked finally.

‘Wait,” you said, before he had a chance to go off on you. “I know what you’re going to say, but please… let me explain.”

“You won’t listen to me, why should I listen to you?”

“I don’t want to do this alone,” you said quickly.

“So, that’s the reason you’re here? That’s why you’re telling me that you love me even though you’ve gone out of your way to remind me that you don’t?”

“No. That’s not what I’m saying,” you replied. “Fuck. Why is this so hard?”

“Just say what you mean to say.”

“What I mean is… I don’t want to do this with anyone but you.”

“Look, Y/N, I get that you’re scared,” he began. “Having a baby by a guy that you don’t even know… that’s scary. I can only imagine what you’re going through. Believe me when I say that I will be there for you through it. I’ll be there for everything, because it’s my kid too, and I’m scared as well. But, you’ve got to stop with the back and forth of saying you care about me and then taking it back.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Then why are you still doing it?” He shouted. He gave you a frustrated look again, tears building up in his eyes and you couldn’t help but to focus your attention on the ground just to avoid the look of hurt on his face.

“One minute, you’re all over me; the next you hate me. You’re fucking with my head and I can’t do this.”

“I didn’t mean to-“ your voice caught as you held back the need to sob. Only now were you really realizing how much you had hurt him, and the thought of it upset you.

“You don’t deserve to be treated the way I’ve treated you,” you said softly. You looked back up to meet his stare, both of you looking like you were each about to lose it any second now. “I know that night was a mistake, and I know you didn’t mean any harm by what happened. I’ve spent the last few months just- so confused, and I took it out on you.”

“I’m sorry to have put you in this situation,” he replied. “Everything got so messed up, and I know it’s my fault. I could have done so many things differently.”

“But, I don’t think I would’ve wanted anything to go differently.”

He said nothing, only narrowed his brow at you as if you were crazy.

“If we hadn’t gotten married that night,” you began with a small smile, “do you think… maybe… there still could have been something there?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, would we have started to like each other otherwise?”

“I think I still could’ve fallen in love with you had we done this the normal way,” he replied.

“Do you really love me?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it, Y/N,” he said softly.

“Me neither,” you chuckled.

“Yet, you’ve got me convinced that you meant it when you said you lied about it.”

“I can be very convincing.”

“I don’t know if I understand what exactly is happening here,” he admitted.

“I kept trying to convince myself that what I felt for you wasn’t love,” you said. “How could it be? We just met. We’ve been in this ‘relationship’ for a few months, faking it so that everyone would believe that we did all of this on purpose. I thought everything else was just an attempt for both of us to stick this out so that we didn’t look like idiots.”

“And that’s all it was, right?”

“Every time I caught myself… feeling something for you, I just pretended that it was nothing. It wasn’t until you told me that you loved me, that I thought it was okay to say the same thing.”

“You were just playing along.”

“No. I really did fall in love with you.” You bit your lip as you felt the tears begin to fall. It was a lot harder to admit these things than you thought it would be, mostly because now you were afraid that you had pushed him too far that he’d deny you.

“When I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified,” you admitted. “But, then, I was really happy. Because I knew I had someone to share that with; someone that I really did love, even if our story wasn’t the way I always pictured it. I remember seeing you with your nieces and nephews, and I had a moment of realization that you would be such a great dad. I felt less scared then.”

“Then why did you spend so much time pushing me away? Why did you tell me you didn’t love me?”

“When you told me the truth about that night, I got scared again. I didn’t know your intentions. I thought about the possibility that you lied to me about everything. If you couldn’t be honest about that one mistake, then how could I trust everything else?”

You began to cry freely now, still feeling the fear inside that he could always be lying about something. You saw the immediate look of realization on his own face as he moved toward you.

Rob wrapped his arms around you, pulling you close to him as you let yourself cry into his chest.

“I’m sorry that I did all of this,” he said. “It was easy to lie back in the beginning. When I knew that I loved you, I couldn’t lie anymore. That’s the only reason I told you about that. I thought being honest would make all of this better.”

“I know,” you muttered. “I know that you told me the truth because you needed to. I just- didn’t know how to handle that truth. I felt betrayed.”

“Please, just understand that, even though I remember all of that, doesn’t mean that I understood what we were doing. I really was not in my right mind. Trust me, at no point did I ever think that it was a good idea to go through with that.”

“I can’t make myself forget that you let that happen.”

“I know. I fucked up everything. I’m so sorry.”

“But…” you breathed out as you pulled back from him.

You rested your hands on his chest and looked up at him. He stared down at you, waiting.

“I ask myself now, how would things have gone if Vegas hadn’t happened?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. “I suppose we wouldn’t be married and about to have a kid. We wouldn’t have some drunken mistake to live down.”

“But, would we still have each other?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. “I really don’t know.”

“I could’ve dated you,” you said. “I thought you were cute when I met you. I would not have turned down a date.”

“I would’ve definitely asked you out on a date,” he smiled in return.

“How did we screw everything up so badly?” You laughed as you moved to wipe away tears.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “Alcohol… bad influence friends… the need to get laid?”

“Yeah,” you laughed. “There’s that.”

You readjusted yourself, now resting your hands on his shoulders as he continued to hold you. You stared into each other’s eyes, waiting for something, anything. You were still not good at this. You didn’t know how to just say exactly what you wanted to say, so you went with the first thing that popped into your head in a time like this.

“I love you, Rob.”

“Are you sure?” He asked seriously.

“Out of all the things I ever thought I was sure of, being in love with you is the only thing that do absolutely know for sure.”

He swallowed hard, tears welling up in his eyes again and you were afraid that maybe you had missed your chance with him. You thought for sure he was about to turn you and these mind games down.

“Well, I’ve been telling you for a long time now how I feel about you,” he responded. “And I meant it every single time. I love you too.”

You let out a stuttered laugh, mostly out of relief over hearing his words. You hadn’t completely screwed this up at least. He smiled back at you, looking as relieved as you felt.

“Can I please kiss you?” You asked hopefully.

“You don’t even have to ask,” he replied as he brought his face down to yours.

He crashed his lips against yours as he pulled you closer to him. You tangled your hands into his hair, holding him there as if you were afraid to ever let go again.

When you needed to come back for air, you hesitantly ended the kiss, still gripping onto his hair. He kept his grip on your waist, smiling at you as he pressed his forehead against yours. You let out a sigh, closing your eyes as you enjoyed the moment. To say that you weren’t still completely terrified would be a lie, but you allowed the thrill of knowing that he was yours take over.

“I’d love to stay here and kiss you all day,” Rob began. “But, maybe we should take this inside.”

“Yeah,” you laughed. “We’re giving everyone a show.”

He let go of you then, taking your hand as he led you inside.

* * *

“Do you need anything?” He asked as you stepped inside. He led you to the couch, where you eagerly took a seat. You had been standing outside for quite a while and already your feet were aching. It was as if he knew exactly what you needed without you even having to say anything.

“Something to drink?” You asked sheepishly.

“I’ll make you some tea.”

He disappeared into the kitchen for some time, leaving you to get comfortable. You glanced around his place, which hadn’t changed at all since you had lived with him for those few weeks. Just being here helped you to relax. You had grown accustomed to being here with him, and it was difficult to have to move out in the first place.

You lost yourself in though, mostly of memories. It felt like you and Rob had a lifetime of memories that had accumulated in such a short period of time. Most of them were tough times, but it was the really good moments that stood out. It was those moments that now made you feel as if everything would be okay.

Still, a part of you wondered how things would be if the two of you had made other choices. While you felt okay with your mistakes right now, could things have been better?

When Rob wandered back into the room, you looked up at him wistfully, still lost in your mind.

“Really, how do you think things would have gone between us if we hadn’t gotten married in Vegas on accident?” You asked.

“Well, I can say that I definitely would’ve asked you out on a date.”

“Really?”

“Hell yeah. Hot, single, new girl? I would’ve been all over that.”

He grinned at you as he handed you your tea.

“Hmm,” you hummed as you took the mug from him, easing next to him as he sat beside you. You snuggled against his body, inviting him to rest his arm around your shoulders. “You were all over that.”

“I would’ve done it right though.”

“Do tell,” you smiled. You perked up, eager to hear his take on what could have happened.

“Okay,” he grinned. “I can play this game. I would’ve asked you to dinner. Granted, I would’ve asked when I was filled with less alcohol, so I would have been a nervous mess about it. I probably would’ve stuttered out everything and probably done something stupid like, spit on you because I was so nervous.”

“Ew,” you exclaimed. “That does not sound pleasant.”

“No, but you would’ve thought I was adorable. Something tells me that you unlike nervous me.”

“That’s true. I probably would’ve said yes, by the way.”

“Awesome,” he replied. “Then we would’ve went out on a date.”

“Where would you have taken me?”

“There’s this great sushi place in Vegas…”

“I love sushi,” you smiled. “Although, not currently.”

You placed a hand on your belly, causing Rob to grin as he too placed a hand there. You stayed like that for a moment, just taking in the reality of the situation. It was a lot less scary for both of you now, and a lot more exciting.

“That’s where I would’ve taken you,” he continued.

“We would’ve had a nice time,” you added. “Lots of conversation. You would’ve eased up a bit, become less nervous as we got to know each other more.”

“Yeah, I would’ve grown more comfortable around you.”

“Then what? What happens next?”

“Then, I would’ve taken you out on the town. We’d find a classy place, have drinks, talk more.”

“Classy?”

“A classy place for a classy lady,” he grinned.

“Yeah, so classy that I married a complete stranger in Vegas,” you retorted.

“You’re right,” he said as he pondered his next move. “I suppose a hotel bar would work just as well.”

You playfully shoved him and he laughed.

“What about dancing?” You asked as you took a sip of your tea.

“Oh, I would’ve definitely asked you to dance. You would’ve said no when I offered though.”

“I would?”

“Yeah, because you say that you can’t dance. At least, that’s what you said the time we actually danced.”

“I did say that.”

“So, I’d tell you… you just need the right partner.”

“And you’d be right,” you breathed out. Your mind went back to that moment when he eagerly danced with you at his place.

“You’d finally give in, let me lead you, and you’d be a great dancer.”

“Only because I have the perfect partner,” you reminded him. “Then what?”

“We’d just dance. I’d hold you close to me and we’d look into each other’s eyes… then we’d have that moment of realization that we just had to kiss, just to see if what we’re feeling is real.”

“And would we? Kiss? Or do we chicken out?”

“I wouldn’t have chickened out,” he replied. “If you had let me, I would’ve kissed you then.”

“On our pretend date,” you reminded him.

“Yeah,” he muttered.

“Okay, so hypothetically, we’d kiss on our first date… what then?”

“I would’ve started to fall for you,” he shrugged. “I’d would’ve wanted you all the time.”

“Would we date?”

“Definitely.”

“That sounds nice. I wonder what would’ve happened after all of that.”

“Someday… I probably would’ve married you for real,” he explained. “We would’ve had this big wedding with everyone we love there, after we dated for some time though. We would’ve started a family together. I would’ve done it all the right way, if I had just asked you out.”

You felt tears build up again. What had started out as a fun make-believe situation had turned into something more like regret. At least, that’s what you got from him as he spoke about it. There were so many things that could have been, had you each just done one thing differently. Still, you didn’t want him to regret things; you certainly didn’t.

“Well, all of that is hypothetical,” you said. “We could’ve went out on that date and ended up hating each other.”

“You think?”

“Yeah. I mean, we could’ve had one date and then decided to never speak to each other again.”

“I guess so…”

“Instead, we did something really serious and hated each other before anything else.”

“Well, I never really hated you…”

“I didn’t hate you either, but we sure acted like we did.”

“Yeah, we really got it wrong,” he chuckled.

“I think it was just right,” you smiled. “Not perfect, and we definitely didn’t do this the ‘right’ way, but I guess we did it the way that was right for us.”

“Are you reasoning with yourself that this entire thing isn’t fucked?”

“Oh, it’s definitely fucked,” you giggled. “But, I don’t think I’d trade any of it for anything.”

“Really?”

“I never filed for divorce,” you said. “So we’re still very much married. We’re having a baby… we’re starting a family. This isn’t how I imagined my life going, that’s for sure, but at the end of the day, I have everything I ever really wanted.”

“You really wanna do this?” He asked seriously. “This isn’t just an attempt to make things work because you’re pregnant and afraid to be alone?”

“No. I really wanna do this. I’ve had a lot of time to think. I’ve had a lot of time to come to terms with how I feel about you. There’s a reason I never signed those papers, I just had to accept that reason finally.”

“So, what happens next?”

“I don’t know,” you said. “I kind of like not knowing. I think I like spontaneity, so it’s better to not have a plan.”

“Well, I think you and I perfectly define spontaneous,” he laughed.

“Maybe we should just not have a plan,” you added. “I like just seeing where life takes us.”

“No plan? Are you sure?”

“I mean, the last time we had a plan, everyone bet on us and the plan got fucked.”

“You’re right. We’re not good at planning.”

“So, if you’re willing, let’s just… go with it.”

“I’m okay with that,” he replied. “But, I have to ask, since this marriage was the entire reason things got so messed up, do you want to stay married? Or do we just end that and start over?”

“What’s the point?” You asked. “You said you would’ve married me someday anyway.”

“Yeah, the right way.”

“There is no right way, Rob.” You reached out to him, running your hand along his jawline, allowing him to move toward your touch. “Let’s just do things our way.”

“The kids are gonna love to hear this story someday?” He said with a chuckle.

“Kids?” You asked, raising your eyebrow at him as you emphasized the fact that the word was plural.

“I mean, we don’t have to plan that far ahead, but maybe someday.”

“Let’s see how we handle one first, okay?”

“I can live with that.”

“Also, the kids will love this story, because I’m finally learning to love it myself.”

“Yeah? No regrets anymore?”

“How could I regret our story?” You asked before leaning in to kiss him.


	30. Part 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader has come to her senses, but Rob is questioning her intentions now. He can pretend that he’s not concerned, and he tries really hard to just accept her back into his life. But in a moment of weakness, as his questions build, everything that they worked so hard to hide from everyone comes crashing down.

**Rob’s POV**

To say that Rob wasn’t still concerned about Y/N’s real intentions, was a complete lie. The two of them had gone through so much back and forth in this relationship; half the time, he couldn’t even think straight. Having her show up at his doorstep like that, following a rather confusing couple of moments initiated by her, Rob couldn’t help but to be weary.

Still, her words were all that he heard. Just hearing her tell him that she loved him was enough for him to let her back in. The thought of her just doing this because she was afraid to be alone didn’t leave him though. They each had a history of lying to each other, why would this be any different?

He could make himself believe her though. He could push aside the nagging questions he had if meant that he got to be with her in the end. That was all he ever really wanted.

He had been surprised by their moment of pondering what could have been. At least Y/N seemed into it as Rob talked them through their hypothetical date. She seemed excited by it. Even more, she seemed content with the way things really were. Rob studied her hard, trying to catch a glimpse of anything that could resemble regret on her face. As they spoke, he only saw her smile. Maybe she really did love him.

He was even more surprised when she asked if she could stay the night with him. He had taken her out to dinner, since their lunch date plans hadn’t happened. Afterwards, as he drove her home, she insisted that he take her to his place, that is, if he wanted to. How could he turn her down?

They spent the night together, talking more and cuddling in bed. The sweetness of the cuddling and the kissing quickly turned a lot more heated when the need for each other took over. He felt no regrets about anything as he made love to her that night. He only hoped that she regretting nothing as well.

* * *

By the following morning, things still seemed to be okay. They woke up in each other’s arms, kissing each other the way any couple would. That was also the first time Rob got an idea of what it was really like to have a pregnant wife. He couldn’t believe that she was already 12 weeks pregnant and he was just barely getting to know what it was like to be the father in this situation.

He rushed into the bathroom as she darted out of bed, following her so that he could hold her hair back as she vomited. He hated seeing her like this, but he also knew that it was normal. She was just going through pregnancy, and he was finally getting to be a part of that too.

“I’m sorry about that,” she began as they sat at the dining table, having breakfast together. Rob sipped on his coffee, and Y/N had opted for more ginger tea.

“About what?” He asked.

“The throwing up,” she replied.

“Isn’t that normal?”

“Yeah, but we just had this reconciliation. We spent an amazing night together, and then I ruined it by turning into a hot mess.”

“You’re not a hot mess,” he smiled. “You’re pregnant, and I can’t think of anything sexier than the fact that you’re having my baby.”

She gave him a half-smile and he immediately read it as her being unsure about the entire thing.

“Do you really have to go?” She asked, changing the subject.

Rob frowned, recalling how he had told her last night that the band was leaving today to do some shows on the east coast. It was bad timing for their relationship really, and had Y/N come to the conclusion that she loved him a bit sooner, he would have had no problem rescheduling things so that he could spend time with her.

Rob knew that, given the dynamics of their relationship, these few days away could really make or break things for good. Yes, they had each finally come to terms with their feelings, and the aftermath had been great, especially when Y/N finally came to her senses; but he also knew that going away for days right after they began to fix things between them could possibly not go well.

Y/N already had her trust issues with him, that was to be expected, who’s to say she would trust him enough while he was gone after all of this?

“I really have to go,” he replied. “I wish I didn’t. But I can’t back out of this now.”

“I know,” she mumbled in return. “It just sucks that we’re finally at this place together and you’re literally leaving the next day.”

“Timing…”

“We’ve never had good timing.”

“It’s only a few days,” he said, trying to reassure her. “I’ll call you every day.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’m not that kind of girlfriend. Or… wife I guess.”

“Well, maybe I’m the kind of husband who wants to call his wife every day,” he smirked. He stood up from his chair, moving toward her to lean down and kiss her.

She hummed happily against his lips, holding his face between her hands as she accepted.

“I’m not going to argue then,” she replied. “I’m just wondering what I’ll do while you’re away. I’ve been so bored since I’ve been pregnant.”

“Well…” Rob began as he started to gather the dishes from the table, “you could work on moving some of your stuff back in.”

He headed toward the kitchen and Y/N darted her head toward him.

“Really?” She asked as she stood up to follow him. “You know I only brought that up in a moment of weakness? I didn’t mean to sound so forward.”

“I made you feel that good that you suddenly just decided you needed to move in?” He asked as he winked at her.

“You make me feel that good, I’ll probably offer up almost anything,” she smiled.

“I think it’s a good idea, Y/N,” he added as he turned to prepare dishwater in the sink. “I would’ve brought it up if you hadn’t.”

“Really?”

“Yes really. I know it’s a.. strange situation, but we did live together for a few months. Besides, we’re married and we’re having a baby. Honestly, I’d feel better having you here, especially now.”

“I’d feel better being here,” she said honestly. “It never did feel right after I left.”

“Then move in. We’ll figure out the rest later.”

“You know,” she said slowly as she moved up behind him. “You’re a pretty decent husband. Husband of the year actually.”

She slinked in next to him, bumping his hip with hers as he focused on washing their dishes.

“Wow, if I can win husband of the year by allowing my wife to move in with me… maybe we really are pretty fucked up.”

She let out a soft chuckle as she put her hands in the dishwater. Together, the smiled, helping each other with the dishes as a regular married couple would. Occasionally, he’d let his hands graze against hers in the water and her breath would catch each time. It was just like before, back when when he was starting to fall in love with her.

“You’re an okay wife, by the way,” he said softly as stopped what he was doing. He pushed the dish that she was holding beneath the water out of her hand, grasping onto it as he turned to look at her.

Her eyes met his, and there it was. That same feeling all over again. Every time he looked at her it was if she was doing something new to make him fall for her again. Even in this moment; a moment that only brought back a memory of a time that was a lot more difficult than it needed to be, he was still falling for her.

He studied her, noting the soft smile she gave him. He still wondered if this was what she really wanted though.

Despite their amazing night together, and the relief that he felt over having her back; he couldn’t stop thinking about what her reasons could be. He tried to convince himself again that he needed to just believe her, even if deep down he wasn’t so sure.

“What?” She asked with a laugh. Rob realized that he had been staring at her for probably an uncomfortable amount of time now.

“Nothing. I just realized that I can kiss you right now and no one would interrupt us. We were always interrupted.”

“You better take all the chances you get then.”

Knowing that he was extremely lucky to have her here with him again, and that he couldn’t help but feel as if she might be doubting her choice to give him another chance; did just that. He kissed her as if his life depended on it.

* * *

**Reader’s POV**

When Rob rushed out the door with his luggage that afternoon, it all became very real that you were on your own for a few days. Not that you hadn’t been on your own before, but the reconciliation was still so new, the idea of him leaving now worried you.

You couldn’t place what it was exactly that had you nervous, all you knew is that you didn’t want him to go. Not now when things were good again.

“I’ll call you as soon as I land,” Rob promised.

You tried to force a smile, nodding that you understood.

“Hey, just a few days,” he added as he placed his hand to your cheek. He gave you a smile and you melted.

“I know,” you mumbled. You nuzzled against his touch as he leaned in to kiss you. “Have fun. But not too much fun. Think about your pregnant wife who is stuck here having no fun.”

“Right, no fun will be had,” he chuckled.

“I love you,” you reminded him as he headed out the door. If nothing else, you wanted to make sure that he knew. You figured saying it as often as possible would help him to feel better about all of this, especially given the way things had been such a mess.

“I love you too,” he grinned. He gave you another kiss, this time really hurrying out the door. “I’ll see you when I get back, right?”

You gave him a confused look, now catching on to how nervous he seemed.

“Of course,” you said. “Why wouldn’t you?”

“Right,” he chuckled. “I know I will, and I expect you to be all set and comfortable in our home.”

“Watch what you say,” you called after him as he hurried toward the car that was waiting for him. “I’m gonna start turning your studio into the nursery!”

“I do have an extra room,” he responded with a laugh.

You smiled and waved to him as he got into the car, taking in the sight of him as he grinned at you and waved back. Before you knew it, he was in the car and heading down the road.

You sighed, feeling an ache in your chest over watching him leave. Part of it was knowing that you would be without him for a few days, the other part was that split second of strange behavior just now.

The two of you really did have bad timing. All you had wanted was to fix things between you and spend some time together; time that you had missed out on while you were busy trying to push him away. Now, the real fixing of your relationship would have to wait.

* * *

**2 Days Later- Reader’s POV**

Rob had done as he had promised. In fact, it was sort of annoying how often he called you. It still made you smile though to see his name pop up each time he called.

By Saturday, the phone calls had died down though. You went about your day, moving things in slowly from your place, always waiting anxiously to hear from him.

By late afternoon, he still hadn’t called and you knew that he would be performing soon given the time difference between you two. So, you decided to call him to wish him luck.

He answered after a few rings and you were caught off guard by all the background noise when he said ‘hi’.

“What are you doing?” You asked.

“Just getting ready for the show tonight,” Rob answered.

“Where are you getting ready at?” You laughed. “It’s loud wherever you are.”

“Yeah, hold on.”

Rob stopped talking and you only heard shuffling and muffled voices for a while before his voice greeted you again.

“Sorry, the bar is pretty loud. Had to step outside.”

“You’re at a bar?”

“Well, we kinda only play in bars, Y/N.”

“I know that,” you replied. “Are you drinking?”

You don’t know why you even asked. You weren’t stupid, and you could definitely tell that he might be a bit tipsy just by the slight slur in his voice.

“Do you have to ask?” He chuckled.

“No, I just- take it easy, alright?”

Rob stayed quiet for a moment, probably trying to process what you had asked of him and why. You really didn’t have the guts to tell him that you were jealous that he was out having fun with his friends and you were stuck at home, pregnant with his child.

“Take it easy?”

“Yeah, you know- just, don’t get too crazy.”

More silence, followed by the sound of him exhaling deeply.

“I’m just having fun with my band, Y/N.”

“No, I know that. And that’s great.”

“I didn’t realize we were at the point of you being able to tell me what not to do,” he said flatly.

“I’m not trying to boss you around,” you muttered. You were taken aback by how mean his statement sounded.

“Sounds like it.”

“Rob- I… I just-“ you stuttered out, trying to come up with something to say that would alleviate the situation that already sounded like it wouldn’t end well.

“You just what?”

“Look, I just called to say good luck. I didn’t hear from you all day.”

“I don’t have to call you all the time,” he reminded you.

“I know.”

Now, you were uneasy. He was being sharp with you, and it didn’t help that he was obviously already drinking. Maybe it was just your hormones acting up, but you felt genuinely upset that this conversation was not as loving and sweet as the last conversation you had had with him.

“You don’t trust me, do you?”

“I didn’t say that,” you argued. Despite the tenseness between you, though still tried to lighten the mood. “But, we both know that you do stupid things when you drink too much.”

You scolded yourself for saying it out loud. That wasn’t really the reason you wanted him to slow down at all, and it certainly wasn’t funny to even bring it up. This entire conversation was happening because you were jealous. That tiny part of you that maybe didn’t trust him should not be coming out right now, but that was the only voice that decided to speak her concerns.

“Really? Just me?”

“I didn’t mean that,” you said. “Look, I’m just a little bummed that you’re out having fun, and I’m sitting here alone. Especially after we talked and things are so good between us.”

“Are you sure things are good?” He asked. “Because it doesn’t sound like they are. In fact, it sounds like you’re pissed at me and you think I’m going to do a repeat of Vegas with someone else.”

“I don’t think that. I think we’ve both learned our lessons on that topic.”

“Yeah, you sound super thrilled to be married to me still.”

“What are you- what are you talking about?”

Now you were just confused. How this conversation had shifted this much was beyond you, but it almost felt as if Rob was looking for a fight.

“Y/N, I don’t know why you came back. I don’t know why you didn’t file the paperwork. I do know that you’re really good at pretending that you still want to be with me.”

“Rob!” you exclaimed, now hurt by his accusations.

“I’m sorry,” he sighed. “Being away from you has just made me think a lot. When you showed up at my door again, and handed me those papers, I knew there was a reason.”

“Because I love you,” you said, raising your voice. You felt tears well up in your eyes. Again, he was saying things that genuinely hurt you. None of it made sense either. He had left and you had parted on what you thought was a good note. Now, he was suddenly unsure of your intentions.

“Or it’s because you’re scared and you don’t want to be alone,” he replied. “I get it. You’re scared because you’re pregnant, and it’s my responsibility too.”

“Oh my god,” you muttered. You felt tears fall as you listened to him speak. His words slurred and he sounded emotional as well. You only hoped all of this was because of the alcohol. “Rob, I came back to you. After everything you did, I came back.”

“See,” he sighed. “You will never let me live that down.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Just- stop,” he begged. “The last couple of days all I’ve been doing is wondering why you came back. I ignored it because I love you. But, no one comes back to the man that hurt them; that happy and that eager to forgive, unless there’s something else going on.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Just- you can’t come back to me and tell me that you love me just because we’re having a baby.”

“How did this conversation turn into this?” You asked as you wiped tears from your eyes.

“I don’t know,” he mumbled. “I’ve been thinking too much, and then you called and… I don’t know why I’m telling you all of this.”

“These are legitimate concerns of yours?” You asked. “You think I’m still staying in this marriage to save face? You think I came back to hurt you?”

“I don’t know what I think,” he replied. “But I do know that, yes, I’m questioning everything that you’re doing.”

“I can’t believe this,” you said softly. “I’ve been moving my things into your place. Rob, I didn’t file for divorce.”

“I know,” he slurred. “Why?”

“I don’t want to talk to you right now,” you said sharply. “Maybe it’s best if we just figure this out when you get back.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“Please, chill on the drinking. At least for tonight.”

“Only if you chill on telling me what to do.”

“Okay,” you said firmly. “Goodbye. I’m not talking to you when you’re like this.”

You wanted to ask him why he was being so mean. You wanted to know what it was that had dredged all of this up. The two of you had went from a really calm and loving reunion just days earlier, and now it was as if he was bitter about you coming back into his life.

You knew it was a bad idea to even try to get into this right now, so you bit your tongue and decided that you would just let him do his show and be grumpy. It might be better to talk about his behavior in person when he was sober.

“Fine,” he replied. “You sure you’ll still be around when I get home?”

“You know, I’m beginning to wonder if I want to be,” you admitted.

He started to speak again, but you cut him off. This conversation needed to end before either of you said anything else you would regret.

“I’ll be here, okay?” You promised. “But, for now, I don’t want to talk to you.”

“We’ll talk when I get back,” he breathed out. “We need to really talk.”

“Fine. But not like this.”

“I gotta- I gotta go do this show,” he explained.

“Have fun. I love you.”

You heard him hum in reply. You expected an ‘I love you’ in return, but didn’t get one. You got nothing. Just a quiet hum before he hung up. 

* * *

You spent the next couple of hours trying to not think too much about the strange phone call. But, you couldn’t help but be sick with worry over what it all meant. He had been the one to fight so hard for you. He had been the one to tell you that he loved you over and over again. Why would all of that change so suddenly while he was away on tour? What did you do to make him treat you that way?

You tried to convince yourself that it was just the alcohol talking. Perhaps the man just couldn’t hold his drink. You said it repeatedly in your mind until you almost started to believe it.

You were startled from your thoughts by your phone buzzing suddenly.

You opened your texts, smiling to yourself when you saw a message from Briana. It was a simple message with a link to something attached to it.

_‘You might want to watch this.’_

You clicked on the attachment and it immediately brought you to a twitter post. You smiled when you realized that it was a video from tonight’s show. Despite you and Rob’s little argument earlier, it still made you happy to see his face, even if it was through the phone.

Someone had live-streamed the entire show. It was something you learned quickly about Rob’s fans, if there was a show somewhere for one of his band’s, someone would record it.

You pressed play on the video, still smiling as you got comfortable on the couch. It wasn’t a bad way to spend a Friday night; watching your husband perform even though he was on the other side of the country. You only hoped that his obvious inebriation that you notice earlier wouldn’t hinder his performance.

You could tell right away that Rob had been over-served, and you were sure everyone else could tell. But, maybe that was just the norm for concerts. You knew all too well that everyone drank on SNS nights, and maybe this was no different. Still, he managed to get through the songs without noticeably messing up the music or the lyrics. Luckily, he had Jason taking most of the leads.

You watched as the band finished up a song, taking a break before moving into the next one that Jason was trying to introduce.

_“This song is called ‘Just Walk Away’,” Jason began._

_“Yes,” Rob added. “This is about my wife.”_

You pulled back, sort of surprised by Rob’s words given what the song was actually about. You couldn’t really tell from watching him on the tiny screen, but he seemed irritated.

_“No… it’s not about her,” Jason corrected._

You could see Jason’s concern as he watched his friend.

_“Yeah, tonight it is.”_

Through the video, you saw that Jason was trying to talk to Rob. You couldn’t hear what was being said, but it looked as if Jason was definitely trying to talk his friend down. Rob mostly stared off and tried to steady himself.

_“Okay, fine,” Rob finally said into the microphone. “That’s not what this song is about. But, take my word for it; don’t accidentally marry someone in Vegas. It just turns into a really fucked up situation even if you think you have it under control.”_

You groaned, resting your face in your hands. You heard the band move into the song quickly, as if even they were trying to stop Rob’s meltdown.

Not wanting to hear any more, you moved to shut the video off, locking your phone afterwards.

There it was. Everything that the two of you had fought so hard to hide was out in the open now. Your mistakes and your lies were fandom fodder by that one simple drunken revelation.

You sat there in shock over the whole thing. Yes, he had a habit of making poor choices while intoxicated, but for someone who was so adamant about making sure the world never found out about that fateful night in Vegas, he sure managed to unravel the entire thing rather quickly.

Since you seemed to be a glutton for punishment, you pulled out your phone and went straight to Twitter. You held your breath as you searched for the video, this time heading to the comments on the post.

You didn’t know what was worse; the things that people were saying about you, or the things they were saying about your current situation. You were unable to stop reading though. Most of what people had to say was true, aside from the stuff about this all being your fault. It was when you came across some comments about your baby that you had to stop reading.

It was one thing to think that even your pregnancy had been an accident, because well, it had been; but given the new information about your marriage, of course it led people to believe that the baby wasn’t even Rob’s. That was the stuff that hurt the most. Yes, you had made mistakes; and no one fully understood the real relationship between you and Rob. No one could understand what these past months had been like for either of you.

You held back the urge to reply on each and every false comment. It wouldn’t be worth it in the end. You could try to defend your marriage all you wanted, but with the way Rob had acted tonight, you knew no one would believe you.

You weren’t sure if you and Rob would be able to fix anything now. Not after that. For now, your only concern was your baby.

Perhaps reconciling in the first place had just been a bad idea. Maybe this whole thing was meant to come crashing down. Maybe you were never meant to be to begin with.


	31. Part 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob knows he messed up. When it comes time to actually face Reader again, he’s a bit thrown off by how calm she appears to be about the whole thing.

**Rob’s POV- the next morning**

“What the fuck did I do?” Rob muttered to himself as he splashed cold water on his face. His hands gripped the bathroom sink, the room spinning as he tried to steady himself.

The events of last night played through his mind, and even he couldn’t act as if he didn’t remember what had happened. It wasn’t that he wanted to make a big scene like that, but it was word vomit. All of the doubts that he had about Y/N coming back and all of the fears he felt that she was only doing this because she was afraid turned him into that mess. Well, all of that and an excessive amount of alcohol added to it.

It hadn’t helped that he had heard her voice just before he went on stage. He could hear it in her voice; the way she seemed to be so weary about them. He kicked himself over the recollection of the things he had said to her. He had treated her like crap and he knew it. He couldn’t erase the sound of her crying from his memory.

The instant he said what he said onstage, he wished he could take it back. There was a sense of immediate regret as the band started the song, probably hoping to overshadow the part where he just admitted what this whole thing had been. All of that was bad enough. But, it was after the show when things got worse.

_Jason had immediately approached him, asking what the hell he had gone on about. Rob had nearly forgotten that Jason didn’t know about Vegas and what it all really was. Hell, he had nearly forgotten himself._

_Before he could even explain himself, Billy had jumped in and berated him._

_“What the hell man?! None of us were allowed to even say anything about your marriage, and now you just announce it to the world?”_

_“Well, I-I wouldn’t say- I wouldn’t say I announced it to the world,” Rob stuttered in return._

_“Yeah, only to a couple of hundred fans who are going to tell their friends. Not to mention the videos that will be online before you realize it,” Billy replied, shaking his head._

_“Oh shit,” Rob whispered. “What have I done?”_

Sure enough, Billy had been right. The entire show had been live-streamed and Rob didn’t dare go online to see what people had to say about his little tirade. Even more, from what he could remember, Y/N had been hurt by the things he had said. He couldn’t imagine what she was thinking if and when she saw the evidence of what he had done.

Hoping to catch her before she saw anything, he pulled himself together and shakily grabbed his phone from the counter. He called her right away, not at all surprised that she had obviously ignored his call, sending him straight to voicemail.

He hung up and opted to text her instead.

_‘We need to talk.’_

He waited and saw that his message had been delivered right away and he waited for a response.

 _‘I don’t want to talk to you,’_ was all she said.

_‘I made a mistake. Please, talk to me.’_

Again, she read his text, but this time, she didn’t reply.

He gave it a few minutes before placing his phone back down. He sighed heavily, pressing his eyes closed tight as he tried to ease his growing headache.

He really didn’t know why he had even talked to her like he did, and he certainly didn’t know why he chose to let it out on stage that their entire marriage had been an accident. Perhaps it was the liquor, or maybe it really was just some deep seeded concerns that he had spent way too long holding in. What he did know was that he regretted everything. All he ever wanted was to have her back. He wanted this relationship to work.

Now, he was sure he had destroyed his chances all over again.

A part of him was still wrestling with the idea that she had only come back to him simply because she was pregnant or scared about the possibility of looking like an idiot for divorcing her husband of less than a year. That thought process was the whole reason Rob had gotten himself into this current mess in the first place. But, there was that small voice in the back of his mind that reminded him he could be worrying about that for no reason at all. It was that voice that constantly told him that Y/N really did love him. He just wished that voice had been louder than the other at this point.

Throughout the day; Rob tried to avoid his band mates stares. He couldn’t really tell if they felt sympathetic toward him, or if they were just thinking that he was an idiot. Either way, he avoided it. He remained mostly worried about Y/N and what she must be thinking right now.

He couldn’t exactly ask her, as she was still denying his attempts to contact her. All he could do was hope that she’d at least let him have a face-to-face when he got home. 

* * *

By that night, he really didn’t even want to get back up on stage. If he wouldn’t be letting even more people down by backing out of the show, he definitely would have.

He got through the set, keeping his mouth shut unless he was meant to sing; and darting out the back door of the club before anyone could stop him for anything. It wasn’t really like him to not take the time to say hi to fans or pose for pictures, but he couldn’t face anyone after what he had done.

Even by the time he had retired to his hotel room after successfully dodging questions about his entire tirade, he didn’t feel any better. His anxieties over what he had done just built when he remembered that he’d have to go home soon and possibly face her again.

Rob fished his phone from his pocket, sighing as he opened up his messages and began to type. She hadn’t responded to the last twenty or so messages he sent, but he didn’t want to give up just yet.

 _‘I’m an idiot,’_ he typed, reiterating the same statement that he had sent her multiple other times. Maybe if he said it enough, she’d know that he hadn’t meant to hurt her.

Almost as soon as he sent the message, she had read it. His heart raced when he saw the notification. Again, she didn’t respond. 

* * *

**Rob’s POV- back home**

He didn’t really expect Y/N to still be at his place when he returned home the following night; but to his surprise, she was there. He walked in the front door, immediately noticing her sitting quietly on the couch, sipping tea, almost as if she had been waiting for him.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw her, and he almost smiled until he remembered what he had done. He couldn’t get his hopes up just yet. For all he knew, she was just waiting to tell him off and walk out on him forever.

“You’re here,” he said, cringing at the stupid comment.

“I am,” she replied. “I told you I would be here when you got back.”

“Yeah,” he muttered as he dropped his bags by the door before slowly walking closer to her. “I just- thought you would’ve left after the way I…”

“After the way you treated me?” She asked, finishing his sentence.

He nodded in return, swallowing hard as he waited for the inevitable fight that would certainly brew.

“I thought about it,” she continued. “You were really horrible to me. Maybe it’s just because I’m pregnant; with your child by the way, but I don’t think a man has ever made me cry that much.”

Still, Rob couldn’t find the words. He swallowed again, trying to think of what to say.

“You know, the worst part of it was getting a text from Briana later that night.” She set her tea down on the coffee table, still speaking calmly to him which only made him uneasy. If anything, she should be screaming at him.

“A text with a link to a video that she obviously saw first and thought was important enough for me to see.”

“Let me guess,” Rob said finally. “A video from the show that night?”

“Yeah. I quickly understood why I needed to see that.”

“I need to explain-“ Rob choked out. Now he felt like he was going to cry. Sure, Y/N was holding it together well right now, but he could see the look of hurt evident in her eyes as they spoke.

“I don’t want your explanation,” she said sharply. “Not right now.”

“I shouldn’t have done that,” Rob continued. “I shouldn’t have talked to you that way, and I really shouldn’t have said what I said at the show.”

“Let me guess, it was the alcohol talking,” she said sarcastically.

“Yes?” He responded, wondering if it was the right answer.

Based on the look Y/N gave him, it most certainly was not the right answer.

“It’s obvious that you have some concerns. Based on the way you spoke to me, I sort of feel like you didn’t want me to come back.”

“No- I did,” he replied. “God, I did. I was so happy when you did.”

“Then I’m confused.” She spoke softly now, tears welling up in her eyes as she stared at him, waiting for answers.

“I just- got in my own head and started to question why you came back. After everything… why did you choose to come back now?”

“We’ve been over this.”

“I know- Look, I was drunk the other night and I said things that were on my mind, but I didn’t say them the way I should have.”

“And then you just, what? Thought it would be best to announce to everyone that this was an accident? You thought it was okay to let everyone know that we made a mistake that has only gotten out of hand?”

“No.” Rob replied firmly. “That definitely shouldn’t have happened.”

“But it did,” she said sharply. “Everything that we worked so hard to keep private… everything that we didn’t want to admit out loud… and you just… let it slip?”

“I know-“

“Now everyone knows what this was. Do you realize what you’ve done? Even after we came to terms with what we felt for each other, after we decided that this was real- and it was all a joke to you.”

“It wasn’t a joke. It’s not a joke.”

“To everyone else it is.”

Now she had tears streaming down her face. She reached up to wipe them away, sobbing quietly as Rob just stood there like an idiot, not knowing what to do.

“I’m so sorry,” he muttered.

“I’m going to bed,” she said suddenly, obviously not wanting to hear his apology. “I know we need to talk about this, but I just can’t right now.”

Rob nodded as he watched he’d stand up and walk away from him. He still didn’t have the words. Even if he did, he wasn’t sure they would matter. She was definitely hurt by what he had done and all he could do was watch her cry.

He waited for her to get her things and walk out the front door, but to his surprise, she headed in the direction of the bedroom. Their bedroom. He looked at her curiously and she must have noticed.

“It might be best of you take the guest room tonight,” she muttered.

“Okay,” he replied as she walked past him.

He stood in shock as he heard the bedroom door close behind her. It wasn’t until he realized that she wasn’t walking out on him that Rob finally moved. He glanced toward the room, smiling just slightly to himself. She was still here. Even after everything, she hadn’t walked out just yet. Maybe he still had a fighting chance.

* * *

When Rob woke up the next morning, following a restless night; he found Y/N in the kitchen. She had already prepared breakfast and was setting it out on the table and he wearily joined her. He took a seat and watched her as she worked, avoiding eye contact with him.

Y/N first placed a mug of coffee on the table and Rob didn’t want to assume it was for him, but he also knew that she had given up coffee since she found out she was pregnant. Maybe she was just trying to alleviate the tenseness by making him coffee and breakfast. Still, he waited to make the move to drink it. He couldn’t help but wonder if it was a trap really, some excuse for her to finally snap on him.

The next time she returned to the table, she was carrying plates and a mug of her own and Rob could smell the strong scent of ginger from her tea. It was only then that he cautiously reached for the coffee and took a sip, eyes still on her as he did so as if he were just waiting for something. She didn’t even flinch though, and Rob eased up a bit.

“How are you feeling?” Rob asked. He knew that it probably wasn’t the right thing to start with, considering; but he couldn’t help but to check on her all the time.

“Oh, you know…” she mused. “A little nauseated, a little tired, and really, really upset.”

“I know,” he said softly, staring down guiltily. “I have to admit, I’m sort of confused as to why you’re still here.”

Again, his words came out sounding worse than he had intended. Really, all he wanted to know was why she seemed so relaxed given what he had done.

“You want me to leave?”

She placed a plate down in front of him and looked down at him, waiting for his answer.

“No. I don’t want you to leave.”

She sat down finally, helping herself to the breakfast that she had just made. Rob on the other hand, sat frozen. The last thing he wanted to do was make yet another mistake.

“What?” Y/N began, breaking him from his thoughts. “My cooking not good enough for you?”

“What? No- yeah it is. Sorry.”

Rob quickly helped himself to the food, not wanting to hurt her feelings anymore, but also still cautious as to whether or not this was all a test of some sort. Y/N was being nice. Too nice, considering.

“Are we going to talk about this?” Rob asked finally.

Y/N placed her fork down softly, folding her hands together and placing her chin on them as she looked at him. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes before speaking.

“Here’s what we’re going to do,” she began. “We’re going to have a nice breakfast together. Then, we’re going to talk about the reasons why you apparently don’t trust me. We’re going to discuss the way you spoke to me in depth. Then, we’re going to talk about what you did.”

“Okay,” he breathed out, preparing himself for the inevitable blow up that was bound to happen.

“We’ll do that after we eat,” she explained. “And we’ll do it in the office of our therapist. I hope you didn’t have other plans today.”

“Wait, you’re making me go to therapy?”

“Yeah. For once, I’m forcing you to go, not the other way around.”

“Can’t we just- do this now, get it all out there? I’m going crazy waiting.”

“Oh? Is all of this making you uncomfortable?”

“Honestly, yes,” Rob replied. “You’re- not yelling at me. You’re not leaving. And you’re weirdly calm right now.”

“Well, we all make mistakes,” she said as she took a note of her food. “Besides, is it really worth it for me to tell you what I’m really feeling right now?”

“I don’t know.”

“I just figure, we do best in a certain setting. We’re open and honest with each other. This is something that I want complete honesty about.”

“Okay. Fine. Yeah, I’ll go to therapy with you.”

“Good,” she smiled. “Because if you want to avoid having me walk out on you, again; you didn’t really have a choice.”

Rob nodded his understanding a Y/N went back to her food, focusing only on that as they both sat in the awkward tenseness of the room.

“Thank you for being willing to listen,” Rob said. “And thank you for not leaving.”

“Yet,” he chuckled softly, shrugging at his comment.

“I fucked up. I know that,” Rob reasoned. “I’ll do anything to make it up to you.”

“We’ll just see if it’s enough to fix yet another mess that you got us into.” she said almost bitterly.


	32. Part 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to therapy. This time, Reader isn’t so concerned with Rob’s doubts, they could’ve gotten through that on their own; now, they both just want help on getting through Rob’s admittance of what their relationship really is.

**Reader’s POV**

When Rob drove the two of you to your appointment, you sat there in silence. Mostly, you didn’t even know what to say to him at this point. He was right in the fact that you had remained surprisingly calm about the whole thing; which was a new thing for you given your usual dynamic with him.

He had basically said that he even expected you to freak out on him, and maybe a part of you felt like doing just that. Truthfully, you were just tired. You were tired of the way the two of you went back and forth. You were tired of the fact that neither of you really fully trusted the other. How could you though when this entire relationship was based on an accident and the lies that came along with it?

The only reason you were forcing him to go to therapy was because you weren’t ready to give up on him just yet. Yes, he had done a stupid thing that would surely cause even bigger problems for you, but you also understood that it had only happened because neither of you were quite capable of communicating effectively yet.

Just as you had questioned his motives in the past, you understood that that’s exactly what he was doing right now.

“The last time we spoke,” Stephanie began,” there was some talk about divorce. Y/N, you didn’t know if you could forgive him for lying to you, and you seemed very set on ending this.”

“Yeah,” you replied as you cleared your throat. “I made him sign the paperwork right after that session.”

“So, are you separated?” She asked. “Divorced?”

“We’re not,” you replied. “I- I never did my part. I never signed the papers myself.”

“So, you’re still married?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you sign the divorce papers?”

“I thought I wanted to. For a long time I was angry that he dragged his feet on his part. But, when it came time for me to do my part, I just couldn’t do it.”

“Because you were afraid?”

“Yes.”

“Afraid because you’re pregnant and you didn’t want to do this on your own?”

You sucked in a breath, avoiding Rob’s eyes as you felt him stare at you. How Stephanie was able to call you out like this on something that you only thought Rob was feeling caught you off-guard. Perhaps it did look bad the way you chose to handle everything. You figured if she could see it as well, perhaps Rob’s feelings about it weren’t unjustified.

Still, you knew in your heart why you went back to him. You had always known why you couldn’t bring yourself to sign those forms.

“No,” you mumbled. “I was afraid I’d lose him.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look. At no point did I ever think he would walk away from this. He’s a good man. He wanted to be a part of this. Divorced or not, I wouldn’t ever have been alone on raising a child. I was just afraid I’d lose him for myself.”

“Y/N…” Rob breathed out.

“That’s why I couldn’t go through with it. That’s why I came back to you. I was so tired of saying everything was a mistake, even if it was. I meant it when I said that I didn’t regret us. It hasn’t been perfect, but I sort of love that about us. I just- I didn’t realize how me coming back would affect you.”

He said nothing as you spoke to him, so you worked harder at trying to get through to him.

“Maybe I should have done things differently,” you continued. “I get it, I really do. I’m the one who made everything so confusing.”

“No, it wasn’t just you, Y/N…”

“Yes, it was. I’m the one who encouraged our relationship to go further. I’m the one who couldn’t make up her mind. I was in the relationship, and I was constantly trying to leave it.”

“We were both confused.”

“It didn’t help that I overreacted to the way you told me about Vegas.”

“I wouldn’t call that overreacting. That was a huge secret that I kept from you that I shouldn’t have.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t listen. Instead, I tried to rush a divorce that I never really wanted. I lied and said we were in the process of a divorce when I couldn’t even bring myself to sign the papers.”

“I just want to intervene for a moment,” Stephanie said. “Just so I can have an understanding as to why you chose to lie about that.”

“I was angry with him,” you sighed. “He kept something from me that he shouldn’t have. At first, I just felt really betrayed. I felt like he had lied just to keep me trapped in a marriage that maybe he really wasn’t into the way that I was. I was afraid that I loved him and he was lying about being in love with me.”

“So, he was going to grant you the divorce? He signed everything?”

“Eventually, yes.”

“What was your thought process after that?”

“Well, the day I got the paperwork finally signed by him, I was so set on just ending things. I went home, and was ready to sign them. And then I just couldn’t.”

“How long did you hold onto the forms?”

“Weeks,” you replied.

“What was it that kept stopping you?”

“Just- the reminder that, if I went through with it… if I really signed them, it would all be real. I thought about how I had everything I wanted, even if it wasn’t perfect. I thought about being a single mom…” you paused, taking a deep breath as you closed your eyes. You let your own words sink in. “And, now I understand why he was so freaked out by me going back to him.”

“It’s okay to be afraid,” Stephanie said softly. “Being a single parent is scary. But, you can’t stay in a relationship just because you want to avoid that.”

“That’s not what I was doing…” you mumbled.

“You were willing to work through the issue at hand, not just because you were afraid but because you truly love him?”

“Yes. Despite, well, everything… I just knew that I wanted him. I couldn’t give up on that.”

“Rob,” she began as she turned her attention to him. “How does that make you feel? You tried so hard to convince her to stay, and she did in the end.”

“I was so happy when she came back,” he began. “I was thrilled… but then I had to stop and think about why she chose to give me another chance.”

“I don’t think I understand the problem here,” she said. “I mean, you obviously love each other. You’re having a child together. Isn’t being together a good thing?”

“Oh, it was,” you replied. “Until he acted like a complete jerk.”

You and Stephanie focused on Rob, both of you waiting for him to jump in an defend himself as he always did. Instead, he nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I was a jerk. I shouldn’t have treated her the way that I did. I just- realized that she was coming back because of the baby.”

“But, I wasn’t,” you argued. “That’s not the reason that I didn’t sign the forms. I can see why it looks that way, but that wasn’t it.”

“You still have doubts,” Stephanie jumped in, pressing Rob for his input now. “Why wouldn’t you? She was so focused on ending this. But, she suddenly comes back to you? She insists that she made a mistake by leaving you? It’s a little suspicious especially when she’s pregnant and obviously afraid of being alone through that.”

“Are you trying to make me sound like a terrible person?” You cut in.

“Are you saying that I’m wrong?” She asked. “Are you saying that Rob’s doubts are wrong?”

“Yes!” You shouted, visibly upset now. “You’re both wrong! Of course I’m afraid. Who wouldn’t be? But, that’s not the reason I realized I was making a mistake.”

“Then why, Y/N?” Rob asked finally. “Why did you put me through all of that only to come back all of the sudden?”

“Because I love you,” you stated. You felt defeated now, trying to hold back tears that you knew were coming. You didn’t know what was worse at this point, what Rob had announced to the world, or the fact that he truly didn’t trust you. “I only put us both through all of that because I didn’t want to love you. I didn’t trust you anymore. You hurt me and I just wanted to end things so I wouldn’t get hurt again. In the end, I just- I know that you didn’t do any of that on purpose. It was worth more to me to forgive you than to go through with something that neither of us wanted.”

Rob stayed quiet, looking away from you as he swallowed hard. You hoped that he wasn’t close to tears as well; it was bad enough that you were an emotional wreck over everything and your pregnancy hormones weren’t helping.

“I know, Y/N,” he mumbled finally. He looked back to you, eyes definitely wet with tears building up, but he held it together. “Trust me, I know that we both love each other. In the moment, I just- couldn’t help but think the worst.”

“I get it,” you breathed out. “And I’m sorry I put you through all of that. We should have talked about it more together. I was an idiot for thinking that I could just come back to you like that and go on as if everything was perfect.”

“And I was an idiot because I wanted everything to be that perfect,” he chuckled. “We should know better.”

“Yeah,” you laughed in return. “We’re far from perfect.”

“I feel like the two of you have learned to work through your problems pretty well considering,” Stephanie said. “You both seem to have an understanding of the other person and their fears and doubts…”

“None of that is the issue here though,” you sighed.

“What else is going on?”

“Look, I have no doubt that we could have easily gotten through his doubts about me on our own. If nothing else, all of this counseling has helped us to communicate better. But, there’s one thing that I just don’t know how we are going to handle it.”

Stephanie glanced at Rob almost accusingly.

“What?” He said in surprise. “Why do you automatically think it’s something I did?”

“Because it is,” you cut in.

“Let’s talk about it,” Stephanie began as she made herself comfortable in her chair.

“Okay,” Rob breathed out. “So, I went away for a few days, literally right after Y/N came back and we reconciled or whatever. Obviously, I was having doubts, which we already talked about. The entire time I was away, it just… ate at me. I couldn’t stop wondering why she had come back. I love her. I do. But, I also know that I’ve done some really unforgivable things. To have her come back as if everything was okay, especially while we’re coming to terms with the fact that we’re having a baby… it was too much.”

“You should have said something to me,” you said softly, wishing that he had done just that in the beginning. Honesty would have saved both of you a lot of trouble.

“I know. And I was going to bring it up when I got home.”

“Go on,” Stephanie urged, bringing Rob’s focus back to her.

“I drank too much before a show one night, she and I had a phone conversation and I was just- horrible to her. I didn’t want to say everything like that. I was upset and when I got up on stage, I-“ Rob paused, pressing his lips together to stop himself from admitting to his fuck up.

You could see the regret evident on his face. It was as if saying it out loud would just make it all worse.

“I-I basically told a lot of people that our marriage was an accident.”

Your chest ached as you heard him say it again. It was ridiculous really. Of course you both knew that this marriage had, in fact, not been on purpose. You spent a lot of time reminding yourself that it was all just a drunken mistake. But, after a while, you had grown to hope that it didn’t all have to be an accident. Perhaps it was just the way fate chose to work for the two of you. Maybe if Vegas hadn’t have happened, you wouldn’t have all of the good things that came along with this mess.

“Who did you tell?”

“The audience,” Rob said quietly. “My band, my friends who were never in on it.”

“Don’t forget the thousands of viewers on the videos that were uploaded,” you added.

“Oh,” Stephanie breathed out. She leaned back in her chair after jotting down a few notes and stared off at the wall as if even she didn’t know how to handle this situation.

“He also said that this entire situation that we are in is fucked up and that neither of us have control over it.”

Rob stared at the floor, looking as guilty as ever.

“Well, I don’t think that either of you ever really did fully have control over it,” Stephanie replied. “I mean, that’s why you always ended up here.”

“No,” you admitted. “We definitely didn’t. But… I didn’t want the world to know that.”

“Let me get this straight. Rob, you actually said that your marriage was an accident?”

Rob nodded, clearing his throat nervously before speaking again.

“Yeah, pretty much in those exact words.”

“Why?”

“I- I told you. I was drunk and upset. I knew it was a mistake the second I realized what I had said.”

“Y/N…” Stephanie began. But, you stopped her immediately, knowing what she was going to ask.

“Look, I get that he was confused. I understand that. I put him through a lot of shit lately. I jumped the gun too fast on the divorce, not even really taking a moment to listen to him. In the end, I lied to him about actually filing for the divorce. I was selfish. When I went back and practically begged him not to hate me or leave me, I knew I was being unfair. I was doing the same thing to him that he had done to me.”

“You’re admitting to your mistakes?” She asked with a soft smile.

“Yes. I could tell, you know. I could see it in his face the entire time. He had questions and doubts and I was too afraid to allow him to express those to me. So, he let it all out in the only way he could. I’m not angry with him for the way he spoke to me and I’m not angry that he didn’t trust me.”

“So the real issue here is the fact that he spilled about something that the two of you worked so hard at keeping a secret?”

“Exactly,” you replied. “Months of keeping it from some of our friends, our families, the fans… hell, even our jobs… and it was just… destroyed in seconds.”

“So, the thing that brought you here is no longer a secret,” Stephanie pointed out.

“Right,” you chuckled. “Now we’re just in a world of trouble.”

“I have to ask,” she began, “what was the hardest thing to face in all of this for you, Y/N? Knowing that he thought you were staying with him just because you didn’t want to raise a child on your own, him spilling your secret to everyone?”

“The fact that he didn’t trust me,” you said without hesitation. “That hurt more than anything. Mostly because I realized I had failed at letting him know that I love him.

“That’s interesting. You were both so focused on holding onto this lie. So, the backlash from his admittance isn’t that bad?”

“Yeah, it is,” you replied. “I mean, it sucks what people are saying about us… about me…”

“What do you mean?” Rob interjected.

“Have you been avoiding the consequences of what you did this entire time?” You asked.

“Maybe…”

“Look, I know it doesn’t matter what anyone else says…”

“Tell me what people are saying.”

“Just- people are saying that it’s all my fault. You were right,” you said as you looked at him. “They were always going to take your side. I’m the new girl. Of course it was my fault.”

“That’s not-”

“They think that this isn’t even your baby,” you blurted out. “I don’t know if they’re saying that just to be mean, or if if they really truly think that. I guess with the way you said that everything between us was a mistake, I can see why people would think that it’s probably not your baby or that maybe you don’t want it.”

“Y/N…” he trailed off.

“It’s fine,” you lied. You reached up to wipe away a stray tear, hoping he wouldn’t notice. “I knew that if this ever got out, I would get the brunt of it.”

He moved to comfort you, draping an arm around you before leaning in to place a chaste kiss to your face. He was obviously feeling bad for all of this, and just didn’t know what to say. There was nothing he really could say at this point.

“What are you looking to get from this session?” Stephanie asked finally. “Why are you here today exactly?”

“Because you’re our therapist and you’re supposed to help.”

“I can help you learn how to communicate with each other. I can help you learn more about each other. I can help you figure out ways to work through your issues together. I feel like the two of you have already accomplished much of that on your own…”

“Yeah, I know-“

“Is your marriage in turmoil now? Was Rob’s treatment of you bad enough to where you think it won’t work anymore?”

“No-“ you muttered. “Like I said, it was just- he had legitimate doubts and I understand that. I wish he wouldn’t have talked to me the way he did, but I don’t think that we can’t work through that.”

“Okay,” she smiled. “I can do this. I can help the two of you effectively talk through that incident. We can discuss ways that you can work on building trust in your relationship.”

“Yeah, I’m sure you can,” Rob chimed in. “And that’s great. I definitely want to make this work because we’ve been through a lot and neither of us want to throw away what we have. I think that learning to trust each other again is a good thing. But, that’s not what this is about in the grand scheme of things.”

“Then tell me about the bigger picture.”

“Really?” Rob replied. He let out an annoyed chuckle before speaking again. “We literally just talked about how I fucked up. All of the fans, our friends, and probably even our families now know what this really was.”

“I understand that,” she reiterated. “But, that’s something that you admitted to that you can’t really take back now.”

“Then what do we do?” He asked.

“Look, I can help you fix your marriage and your trust issues with each other. But I can’t fix the truth.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rob asked as he pulled back in surprise by her words.

“All of this,” she explained, waving her arms wildly at the two of you. “The whole truth behind this. I can’t just erase your mistakes. You can’t even erase them. I can only help you learn to get through them.”

“We just- didn’t want anyone to know what this really was,” you said quietly.

“Why does it matter what it was?” She asked simply. “You’ve spent your entire relationship making sure that you could convince people that it wasn’t a drunken accident. But, it was. Neither of you actually meant to end up here.”

“The way we handled it- I can’t imagine what people think,” Rob replied.

“Well, we’re all human and we all make mistakes. But, right now, I don’t think it matters what this relationship started out as. It doesn’t matter what your families or friends or fans think about what ultimately got you here in the first place. People do much worse things under the influence. All you did was get married and try to play it off as if it were real.”

“Yeah, it sounds pretty bad every time you mention it,” Rob said.

“Marriage is hard,” Stephanie explained. “Relationships are hard. And, I can’t even begin to pretend that I understand this specific situation and what it’s like for either of you. But, I do know that you love each other. It might feel like the rest of the world doubts you… you certainly doubt each other most of the time… but, would either of you really be willing to go through all of this if it wasn’t real?”

“I guess not,” you mumbled.

“Y/N, Rob put a lot of pressure on you to keep coming to these sessions when things got difficult.”

“Yeah, and I hated him for it.”

“But you came anyway. You participated even if you thought you didn’t want to.”

You nodded.

“And Rob, we’ve established here today that you’re having your doubts about Y/N’s intentions currently. And yet, you’re here. She’s made the effort to bring you here.”

“Yeah…” he replied.

“What really matters at this point is this…” she leaned forward, making sure that you and Rob were giving her your full attention. “Regardless of how it started, it’s all about where it went. You’ve been working hard at making a real relationship out of what you call an accident. You love each other. You grew to love each other. You’re having a baby. You’re here, often I might add; trying to make sense of an unconventional situation and trying to make this work. If it wasn’t real; you wouldn’t be trying so hard.”

You and Rob sat there silently, letting her words sink in. It was different to have someone put it in those terms to you.

“Your love and your marriage is as real as you want it to be. It doesn’t matter what anyone thinks of the circumstances that got you to where you are now. You spend so much time avoiding the truth; but this… this is your truth. It may not be perfect, it may not be beautiful; but it’s yours.”

“Oh,” you breathed out.

Never before had someone else put you and Rob’s relationship into words like that. You were the only one who looked at it that way, or so you thought. It wasn’t perfect, but it was your story.

You glanced over to Rob who was already looking at you. He had a half-smile present on his face, as if he too completely got what she was saying. You involuntarily reached over to him, placing your hand over his that was resting on his knee. He instinctively moved to grasp onto your hand, giving it a tight squeeze as the two of you smiled fully at each other.

It really was true to what you had thought all along. You knew what you felt for him, but you were so caught up in the lie you never really stopped to consider that maybe none of that mattered.

“And, to be honest,” Stephanie added. “Most traditionally married couples don’t work half this hard at making a marriage work. Trust me, marriage and relationships in general require work and effort.”

“So, you’re saying that you don’t have any advice on how to avoid the backlash of what I said?” Rob asked as he looked at her.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” she smiled in return. “I don’t have those answers for you, but I know that somehow, you do.”

“She’s right,” you said. “This is something that we have to figure out now.”

“Okay,” Rob replied. He breathed out, almost as if he were preparing himself for something that you both knew would be difficult.

“We’ll do it together,” you added.

Rob smiled again, squeezing your hand tighter. You didn’t know how you would do it, but you did know that you both had to take responsibility for this. If anyone could figure out how to handle it, it would be the two of you.

As the session ended, Stephanie walked the two of you to the door. You and Rob still had firm grips on each other’s hands, and you felt safe again for the first time in a long time. You truly felt as if everything would be okay.

“Thank you,” Rob said to Stephanie with a smile. “I don’t know what it is about this therapy stuff, but you’ve really saved our relationship; even back when it wasn’t technically a real one.”

“Yeah,” You added. “Thanks for helping us get through today.”

“I don’t know why you’re thanking me,” she replied. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Of course you did,” Rob argued.

“Yeah, in the past I’ve definitely gotten through to the two of you. But, today, I didn’t really have to do anything.”

You and Rob stared at her, confused by what she meant.

“Look,” she laughed. “I ask some questions… usually I have to bait you into saying things to each other…”

You smiled when you recalled the way she had tricked you into admitting that you were in love with Rob during a past session, something that ultimately worked out well for the two of you.

“But,” she continued. “You did all the work here. You talked through part of the issue together. You worked that out, seemingly before you even got here. I have no doubts that you’ll figure out how to get through the other thing.”

You looked at Rob, only now playing back the last hour in your mind. Stephanie was right. At no point did she actually do anything. Today had been you and Rob working through this together. You smiled at him and he smiled in return. The two of you were probably thinking the same thing; if you could get through everything else that this whirlwind of an accident that tossed at you, who’s to say you couldn’t figure out how to handle the fact that the truth was now out there?


	33. Part 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Rob can’t seem to agree on how to handle Rob’s little meltdown. Reader is worried that maybe they’ll never figure it out, but Rob has plans of his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I’ve forgotten how to write words. This chapter is rushed and messy, but I’m really trying to find some motivation to write.
> 
> Also, I have definitely done this premise before in a different series, but it works here too so just go with it.

**Rob’s POV**

He knew he was lucky that he was going home with Y/N. After everything that he had put her through, after all of the mistakes that he had made; he was lucky that she hadn’t walked away from him for good.

The car ride home was uncomfortably quiet, and Rob was just waiting for her to say something. She never did though. She sat silently, staring out the window as Rob drove. He’d glance over to her occasionally, wondering if that session had magically fixed things after all.

He’d catch sight of her mindlessly running her hand against her ever growing bump now and then and he couldn’t help but smile to himself. Regardless of the fact that he was still anxious about what else she had to say to him, he really was happy. He loved her and he already loved their baby, even if things weren’t perfect. 

“When are you going to tell me that I’m an idiot?” Rob asked as he tossed his keys on the table as they entered the house.

Y/N turned to face him, replying with a smirk that Rob couldn’t really read. Was she really just in a joking mood, or was she waiting to finally blow up at him for all the things that he had done now that they were out of their therapists office.

“Do I really need to tell you?”

“No,” Rob replied. “I guess you don’t.”

“Look, you know what you did. You’ve at least accepted the blame for everything.”

“That doesn’t fix things though,” he argued.

“I’m not mad at you. I already said that I understood.”

“I’m glad for that. I hated having you angry with me and questioning what I felt for you. I’m just- worried about what to do next.”

“What if we just… be honest about everything?” Y/N asked with a shrug of her shoulders.

Her casual reaction to the idea sort of surprised him. Sure, he had thought of doing this as well, but just the thought of being that honest only heightened his anxiety about the whole situation. Would it really be wise to admit everything about that night in Vegas and everything up to this point? Did being honest really matter?

“Everything?” He asked.

“Come on, did we really believe that we could get away with any of this?”

“I thought we might be able to,” he replied.

“Well, I suppose our plan backfired.”

“It wasn’t the best plan,” he admitted. “I’m sorry I convinced you to stay married to me. I haven’t been thinking straight since that night.”

“Neither of us have been thinking straight,” she responded. “But, here we are. We’re in this together. For real this time. And our lives are changing.”

She absentmindedly stroked her belly, making Rob smile as he thought about how they had ended up here.

“I bet you didn’t think you’d be in this position when you joined the conventions,” he said teasingly.

“I bet you didn’t think so either,” she grinned.

“No, but I’m surprisingly happy with the way things turned out. Aside from my breakdown and the way I handled all of that…”

“It was bound to happen,” Y/N offered. “One of us had to slip up at some point.”

“Right,” Rob said as he let out a long sigh. “Now we gotta fix it.”

“What’s the plan?”

“Why do I have to come up with a plan?”

“Because it’s your fault we’re in this mess,” she said simply.

“Well, I thought it was OUR mess…”

“Rob, you’re the one who admitted to a room full of people that this was an accident.”

“I know,” he replied in frustration. Already he was racking his brain trying to think of a way to fix this without hurting anyone. Every scenario he thought of seemed to play out with Y/N upset or hurt again, and he wanted to avoid that at all costs. “I can come up with something though. I can just say I was drunk enough to where I didn’t know what I was saying. I can say that the words came out wrong. I can say that I didn’t mean it.”

“More lies?”

“You know, we don’t owe it to anyone to tell the truth,” he explained. “What got us here… Vegas… we don’t have to admit to anything.”

“Maybe we do,” she replied. “Maybe we just owe it to ourselves to be honest.”

“We can be honest with each other. We don’t have to talk about this with anyone else. This is our life.”

“You do realize what people are already saying?” She asked.

“Yes. I know what they’re saying about us. I know what they’re saying about you and our baby. It doesn’t matter to me. You and I know the truth.”

“I get that, I do… but we can’t keep digging this hole deeper,” she argued. “If we keep lying, we’ll never be able to get out of it.”

“So you really think that we need to just tell the truth?” He asked. “The truth about Vegas? Our fake relationship? The baby?”

Y/N stared sadly at him. He could tell that her mind was racing with thoughts. She was considering if it really was the best idea now. Truthfully, even he didn’t know what to do. Y/N’s idea sounded terrible, but what did he know? It was all of his terrible ideas that had put the two of them in this place right now anyway.

“I do,” she said softly. “We can be honest now and still make this work.”

“Fine,” Rob breathed out. “If that’s what you want to do…”

“What I want is for us both to agree on this,” she sighed. “For once, can we just make a decision together?”

She watched him as if even she didn’t think this was the right way to handle things. He could tell that she needed reassurance, but he was honestly worried about what telling the entire truth could mean for them. How do you admit to your friends, families, and fans that you made such a huge mistake on accident? How do you tell people that you knocked up your fake wife and even lied to her about so many things? Was it even possible to make people believe that this turned out to be the real thing in the end?

He knew that most people would not be accepting of the truth. He also had a vague idea of what people would say if they both confirmed the truth. He didn’t want her to get hurt anymore. That was the only reason he believed that they should just play off the meltdown as a drunken mistake.

“I don’t know what to do,” he finally admitted. “Maybe telling the truth is the right thing, but I also know that I don’t want to lose you again. I’m just afraid of what the truth could do to us.”

“You’re afraid of what people are going to think,” she pointed out.

“Yes, I am. I’m afraid that this is just going to make things worse.“

“Then, I guess we’re not in agreement on how to handle this,” she replied softly.

Rob could see a hint of pain in her eyes as she said it. Again, they weren’t on the same page and the fact that he couldn’t bring himself to agree with her was difficult for him. He wanted to do the right thing, but he wanted to avoid her getting hurt again even more.

“I’m- I’m not sure if I’m ready to be honest with the world right now,” he admitted. “Maybe it’s a good idea to be upfront with our families and our friends at some point… but I don’t want to admit anything to anyone else.”

“Right, I get it. Gotta avoid looking like an idiot I guess,” she replied almost sarcastically.

“It’s not that. I just- really don’t want to give people a reason to hurt you any more than I have.”

She looked sadly at him, forcing a small smile. She seemed disappointed, but Rob could see a hint of adoration in her eyes; probably because of the fact that he was trying so hard to keep her feelings safe.

“Then what?” She asked finally.

“I really don’t know yet,” he replied.

**Reader’s POV**

You didn’t sleep well that night. Even with Rob breathing quietly next to you, seemingly in a perfectly relaxed sleep, you tossed and turned.

You weren’t stupid enough to believe that the two of you would just go home after that session and immediately know what to do. You only hoped that by talking about it, you could both come up with some ideas together. You knew that the most important thing at this point in your relationship was that you had to figure things out as a couple, but after last night, you wondered if you and Rob could ever really agree on anything. You understood that he was only meaning to protect you, and you appreciated that, but you were tired of everything.

You were tired of lying about this whole thing. You were tired of the way people were talking about you and the baby right now, and you were just tired of the way things had built up since that night.

The thought of being completely honest about this with people who didn’t even really know you was scary. Perhaps Rob was right in the fact that he seemed to want to keep going on as if none of it had been an accident, aside from his drunken rambling.

When you woke the next morning, you reached across the bed for Rob. It was really a comfort thing for you now to have him with you. Today though, he wasn’t next to you.

You rubbed sleep from your eyes and glanced around the room, looking for him. You had almost panicked that you had scared him off considering how the two of you couldn’t agree on anything last night. But, your panic wore off as you almost instantly spotted him on the other side of the room.

You frowned in his direction, watching as he was apparently packing things in a suitcase. Normally, seeing him pack wasn’t a thing to be concerned about. The two of you were constantly traveling, so it wasn’t out of the ordinary. When you remembered that you still had another week until the next convention, that’s what worried you now.

“Are you going somewhere?” You asked hesitantly, not sure if you really wanted an answer.

He turned to look at you, a soft smile on his face as he watched you sit up in bed.

“We are,” he replied.

“We are?”

“Pack some things,” Rob said as he made his way toward you. He grabbed your hand and began to pull you gently from the bed.

“Pack? We don’t have a convention for another week,” you retorted. You kept yourself firmly planted in the bed as he tugged on you. When he realized you were being stubborn, he let go of you with a laugh and leaned in to kiss you firmly on the lips instead.

“I know. But, we’re going on a trip.”

“A trip?” You asked.

“Yeah, just you and I. We just need to get away for a few days.”

“Are you okay?” You asked, concerned that he had apparently made plans for the two of you without even talking to you about it first.

“I’m fine. Why?”

“Because you’re asking your pregnant wife to just pack up so we can go on vacation at the last minute. I’m tired, Rob. I just wanted a quiet week at home with you and you’re acting crazy.”

“I just- thought it would be a good idea for us to get away from everything for a bit,” he explained. “I was just trying to surprise you.”

“Well, I’m sufficiently surprised.”

“I guess we don’t have to go. Maybe I should have asked if you wanted to before I booked a flight earlier.”

“You booked us a flight?”

“Yeah, I just woke up and thought that you and I deserved a break from everything. So, I got us plane tickets and a hotel sorted out.”

“To where?” You asked.

“Vegas,” he shrugged.

“Vegas?” Just the word itself surprised you. Of all the places in the world that he could surprise you with, he chose Vegas?

“Yeah. I figured; it’s a quick trip. But, we’d still be getting away from everything.”

“Are you running away from your problems again?” You asked.

“No… I just wanted to be with you. I also maybe do want to avoid making a decision just yet.”

“I know,” you responded. “And, I guess we don’t have to make a decision right away. But, I can’t imagine what made you think that a spur-of-the-moment trip to Vegas would be a nice surprise for your pregnant wife.”

It didn’t necessarily matter where he chose to take you on a surprise getaway. No matter what, you were very limited in your fun level now that you were pregnant. For you, it was the fact that he chose the place where all of this started. The two of you were trying so hard to make this relationship work regardless of how it started; so why was he wanting to return to the place that had helped cause so many of the problems in the first place?

“I guess I didn’t really think too much about that,” he said. “I just thought… it would be nice to be alone together. And there was a flight to Vegas today.”

“Well, what are we gonna do in Vegas?” You argued.

“I don’t know… just relax I guess. Hang out by the pool… do a spa day… “

“Well, I guess all of that does sound sorta nice.”

You gave him a small smile, hoping to ease his mind a bit. Yes, you were shocked that he suddenly decided to whisk the two of you away like this; but, you had to admit that it sounded sort of romantic. Vegas was basically where the two fo you started, and regardless of how terrible things had been at first in your relationship, things were definitely better now.

“Good,” he grinned when he realized that perhaps you weren’t completely shooting down his idea. “Then you should probably pack, because we leave in a few hours.”

**Later that day**

You had played along and packed quickly that morning. When the two of you were ready, you made your flight easily. However, Rob was acting strangely the entire morning. He had been sweet and affectionate; but definitely overly anxious through it all. He sat nervously on the plane, seemingly in daze as if he was lost in thought. You found that talking to him was basically useless as he definitely wasn’t paying attention to what you were saying.

You didn’t want to worry too much about it, but you couldn’t help but panic internally as you noted his strange behavior.

Even when you got to Vegas, the vibe from him didn’t stop being weird. You made it to your hotel, still with him not really talking and just seeming to be sidetracked the entire time.

You all but gave up on trying to engage him and stuck to hoping that his odd behavior wasn’t something that you should be concerned about.

It wasn’t until the two of you settled into your room that he finally spoke more than two words to you.

“You wanna go out and sight-see?”

You glanced up at him, watching as he ran his hand against the back of his neck. He avoided eye contact with you and in an instant; you realized that something wasn’t right. The entire morning had been off, but his nervous behavior right now in this moment made you feel uneasy. Still, you decided not to make a big deal out of it. You only hoped that he would bring up whatever it was that was on his mind right now.

You didn’t answer, but nodded a yes instead.

Rob had gotten the two of you a car and you sat next to him in the backseat as the driver took you somewhere. You hadn’t heard Rob give him any sort of directions, so you assumed he had sorted that out when he called. Basically, you were in this car, unsure of where you were going and still very upset with the way Rob was acting. He still didn’t say much to you and you had given up on trying to make conversation. All you could do was notice how fidgety he was being.

“Are you okay?” You asked finally.

“What do you mean? Of course I’m okay.”

“You’re being… weird today.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize-”

“Please tell me that everything is okay.”

“I promise, I’m fine. We’re fine. I’ve just had something on my mind and I’m sorry if I’ve been a little off. Really, I brought you here so we could spend some time away together.”

“Why Vegas?” You asked again.

“I told you-”

“I know what you told me,” you cut in. “I still think it’s weird that you would bring me here after everything.”

“It’ll all make sense,” he replied with a smile.

This time, he reached out to you; taking your hand and grasping it firmly in his. He didn’t let go for the rest of the ride and you weren’t sure if that was even comforting at this point.

When the car came to a stop some time later, you glanced out the window to see where you were. You took in the sights around you until your eyes fell on the sign of the building that the car had stopped directly in front of. As soon as you saw it, your heart stopped.

Although you still had no real recollection of the last time you were in Vegas, you definitely recalled what this place was.

“Why are we here?” You whispered.

“Don’t you remember?” Rob asked with a sly smile.

In reality, this place should have immediately brought on a whole host of memories; but the only thing you knew about it was that it seemed to encompass all of you and Rob’s mistakes.

“Actually,” you began. “I really don’t.”

“Come on,” he said with a laugh as he opened the car door.

Once he stepped out, he grabbed your hand and helped you out as well. Now, you were standing on a sidewalk in front of the place where all of this had started; Rob gripping tightly onto your hand as you stared at the building, wondering why he had brought you here.

“Did you ever think we’d see this place again?”

“Is this a joke?” You asked.

“It’s not a joke. I brought you here for a reason.”

“Don’t tell me you’re going to break up with me at the same place where we accidentally got married.”

You wanted to have good memories of this place, but you really had no memories of it at all. Even more, the memories that you did have  consisted mostly of months filled with confusion and anger towards Rob. The time that followed that night had been difficult. Sure, you and Rob were in a better place now (aside from the current situation); but that didn’t change the fact that the initial incident had been so difficult.

You couldn’t help but wonder if he had been considering just ending this for real at this point. It seemed that no matter how well the two of you were doing, something came along to mess it all up.

He frowned at you, pulling back slightly at your words.

“You think I’m going to break up with you?”

“Well, you have been acting weird today,” you replied. “I thought that maybe you were having second thoughts about us again.”

“And you thought I’d bring you here to end this? After everything I did to try to keep you, you thought this would be it?”

“I’ve been really worried all day,” you admitted. “I don’t like the way you’ve been acting. You’ve been making me feel like I did something wrong.”

“I’m sorry I made you feel that way,” he said sadly now that he realized how his behavior had affected you. “But, that’s not why we’re here.”

“Then why?”

“I know I made mistakes. I know I was horrible for bringing you here and marrying you that night. But, I like to think that not everything was a mistake. Maybe it was fate. I do love you Y/N. I fell in love with you while we were fake married, even if I made you think otherwise. I’m sorry for everything. All of this… all of this has been my fault. I just want to make things right.”

“It‘s not all your fault Rob. You don’t have to keep apologizing. But I do wish you would answer my question.”

He looked at you in confusion, almost as if he had forgotten that you kept asking him why he brought you to Vegas in the first place.

“Why are we here? Why did you fly me to Vegas just to bring me here again?”

“Because I have to ask you something…”

“You couldn’t have asked me something at home?”

“It wouldn’t have had the same effect,” he chuckled.

“What is it?” You asked. “What is so important that you dragged me here to ask me?”

“Forget that drunken night. Put aside all of the shit we put each other through. If none of that had happened… do you honestly believe that there could have been something there between us?”

“I already told you…”

“I need to hear it again.”

“Yes, Rob. I really do think that we could have still happened without Vegas. I could have fallen in love with you any other way. But, this is the way I fell in love with you. We can’t take any of it back, so why try?”

“I’m not trying to take it back,” he smiled. “I just needed to hear you say it again.”

“You brought me here just to ask me that?” You laughed. “I already told you once, and I could’ve told you again at home.”

“I didn’t bring you here to ask you that.”

“Then please tell me why.”

“Let me do this the right way…” he began.

Before you could react, he dropped down to one knee right there in the middle of the busy sidewalk in front of this cheesy wedding chapel. You understood immediately what he was doing, but you couldn’t think fast enough to react.

“Marry me for real?” He asked as he pulled out a small box. He opened it, presenting you with an actual engagement ring.


	34. Part 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rob has asked Reader to marry him for real. Reader knows it doesn’t matter; they’re okay and they have nothing to prove to anyone. Rob is very convincing though, and what could it really hurt to marry him again?

**Reader’s POV**

When the shock of his action wore off, you grabbed his hand, urging him to stand up. People walking by stopped to stare at the two of you, and you suddenly felt embarrassed to have your husband proposing to you unnecessarily in such a way.

“Please, get up,” you said as you tugged at him.

“I-I just wanted to do things the right way.”

“Rob, you don’t have to do this,” you said. “We are already married. Our marriage has been real this entire time.”

“I know that… but-”

“You said so yourself, we don’t have to prove anything to anyone.”

“That’s not what this is.”

“What is it then?”

“It’s for us,” he said simply. “I know I said that I have some memory of that night, but it’s all a blur. I just thought that we both deserved to have a wedding that we remember… a wedding that we’re both completely present for.”

“You know, if you really wanted to show people that this is real, we could have planned a big wedding with all of our friends and our families. We could really put on a show to prove that we love each other.”

“I don’t want to prove anything to anyone. I just want you. I just want to marry you for real so that we both remember it.”

“Will you please get up,” you said again, tugging at his hand.

Rob hesitantly did as you asked, still holding that little box out to you with the ring inside of it. You saw an almost regretful look come over him, as if he had just realized that you were shooting him down, even if you really weren’t.

“I’m just- I’m doing everything wrong,” he mumbled. “I don’t know what to do anymore and I don’t know what you want from me.”

Letting out a sigh, you placed your hand gently against his cheek, urging him to look you in the eyes as you attempted to calm his nerves.

“I just want you,” you said softly. “I don’t need grand gestures or a ‘real’ wedding. We’re far past all of that, don’t you think?”

“It’s never too late for me to do the right thing,” he replied.

“When have either of us ever done the right thing?”

“Well, I can start doing the right thing. I felt like doing this would be a start.”

“It’s a sweet gesture.”

“You’re not arguing with me,” he said as he turned his face up in confusion.

“Why would I argue?”

“I don’t know- it’s kinda our thing.”

“You know, I never thought I could be so in love with someone who drives me absolutely insane,” you said fondly.

“I’m just trying to make up for all of the things that I did wrong. Because you deserve better than anything I’ve ever done for you.”

“You know, you’re a really good man, Rob.”

“I’m trying.”

“Stop trying so hard,” you chuckled. “We’re okay. Our road has always been a little rough, but I think that just comes along with an accidental marriage. You don’t have to do these grand gestures when it comes to me. I love you just the way you are, I love us just the way we are. Even if we are a little screwed up.”

“I know I don’t have to do this, but I want to.”

You smiled at him, knowing that none of this really mattered in the end. You were married regardless of how it happened in the first place. But you could also tell that this meant a lot to him.

“Okay, then let’s do it.”

“What?”

“You want to marry me again so badly, then fine.”

“Is- is that a yes?”

“That’s a yes,” you giggled.

A smile lit his face up as he fumbled with the ring again. This time, he removed it from its box and you allowed him to put it on your finger. He held your hand for a moment as the two of you stared at the diamond on your hand. Suddenly, this was all very real. Every mistake that you two had made might not be fixed by this one moment, but it was a start to fixing the relationship that you had started to build together.

“You really got me a diamond,” you said breathlessly.

“It’s what you deserve.”

You looked up at him, unable to stop smiling yourself.

“Are we gonna do this or what?” You asked as you nodded toward the chapel.

“I didn’t necessarily mean that we had to do this here,” he explained. “I just thought it’d be somewhat romantic to bring you back here. I know we’re a mess, but our mess started here. And, I have to say, it’s been a beautiful mess.”

“I don’t want a big wedding,” you said as you grasped onto his hand, trying to reassure him. “I just want you. Us. If we’re gonna do this for real, we’re doing it here. Where we started.”

He grinned at you, leaning in to kiss you finally. It was a long, slow kiss; the type of kiss that made you melt.

When he pulled back, he looked at you slyly, still holding onto your hand.

“Then let’s do this for real.”

* * *

You went through the motions again; this time, with clear minds and actual thought put into it. You stood at the altar, taking in every words that the officiant said. This time, you were married by Elvis, Rob’s request.

He had been right. It really did make you feel better knowing that you were remarrying like this. While you had spent a lot of time trying not to regret the way things had gone between the two of you, this really had put you both at ease knowing that it was no longer just some accident that had gotten out of control.

This time, the two of you looked at each other lovingly rather than drunkenly as you said your vows again. You smiled knowing that this time, you’d remember it all. This time, it meant something. 

* * *

Rob helped you into the car after the service and you kissed as the driver brought you back to your hotel. On the ride, you had jumped onto your social media accounts to change your last name, not cluing him in to what you were doing. You took a moment to upload a selfie of the two of you that you had taken just after your vows. This time, you both looked happy and present.

“Remarried the man of my dreams,” you typed into the caption. “It’s been an interesting and complicated ride, but we’re in it together.”

“What are you doing?” Rob asked as he leaned in to peek at your phone. You quickly posted the picture and put your phone away before he could look.

“Just catching people up,” you replied.

You focused on him now, capturing his lips with yours as you lost yourself in your happiness in this moment.

You knew people were talking. You knew they would continue to talk and doubt whatever this was. You knew the two of you had to face it someday. But it could wait for now. You were too happy to worry about the past and your mistakes.

* * *

As the two of you stepped into your room, you saw that Rob was on his phone, probably checking the posts that you had tagged him in just a bit ago. You smiled to yourself, wondering how long it would take him to realize.

“You changed your name,” Rob said breathlessly as he glanced up from the screen and looked at you.

You couldn’t tell if he was shocked or genuinely happy about this.

“Is that okay?” You asked.

“Well, it definitely feels real now.”

“I just- I told you I’m here for this. I know I didn’t have to change my name, but I wanted to. I want you to know that I love you.”

“I know it’s kinda unimportant,” he replied. “A lot of people don’t change their names. But, this really means a lot to me.”

“I know.”

He said nothing else. He dropped his phone on a table and moved toward you, embracing you as he began to kiss you heatedly. You moaned against his mouth, closing your eyes as you wrapped your arms around him.

Before you knew it, he was working feverishly at your clothing, almost desperate to get you undressed immediately. You let him go on, only reaching for his belt as his lips worked against your neck. You shuddered at the sensation of his beard scratching against your skin paired with the softness of his lips on you.

Once the two of you were undressed, he led you back toward the bed, lips never leaving yours as you held onto him.

“I can’t believe you’re really mine,” he whispered as he topped you, still placing now gentle kisses against your skin.

“I’ve always been yours,” you replied. “Even when I thought I didn’t want to be.”

He kissed you hard again, this time pushing himself into you. You groaned against his mouth, fingertips digging into his back as you savored the sensation of having him again.

* * *

As the two of you laid together afterwards, you could tell that he had a lot on his mind. Your first thought was that now he was regretting this. It wouldn’t be the first time either of you had regrets; but you were at peace with everything, the last thing you needed was for him to be unsure. You just wanted the two of you to be happy together.

“What are you thinking about?” You asked as you reached up to turn his face toward you.

“I’m thinking about how goddamn lucky I am,” he smiled.

“Is that all?

“You know,” Rob began, hesitating for just a moment before continuing. “I guess none of this fixes any of what I said. Getting married for real… knowing that we love each other and we want to be together… It doesn’t really matter what we know, people are still going to talk. What I said that night… that’s out there forever. I’m worried it will just haunt us.”

“I know.”

“I still don’t know how to fix that.”

“Maybe it’s not fixable,” you shrugged. “I don’t know that you can take any of it back at this point. There’s a lot that neither of us can take back.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

“Maybe not,” you said honestly. “But, I think that’s just a part of being in a relationship. You can’t fix everything. But, we can just move on from it.”

“What do we tell people?” He asked. “Especially after our second wedding.”

“Maybe we need to just stop digging this hole deeper,” you said.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, we might have thought that we had an actual plan at one point… but it was really just one lie after the other. We just kept lying and hiding until we got to the point where we didn’t even trust each other.”

He looked at you, questioning what you meant.

“What if we were just honest?” You asked. “Everyone had their doubts in the first place, and rightfully so. You and I have been terrible at keeping the lie together. I think that no one really believed any of this was real anyway. So, what if we just admit that it wasn’t real… until it was anyway.”

“You really think anyone will believe that two people, who barely knew each other and got drunk married, actually fell in love in the end?”

“No. But, I believe it. And if you believe it, that’s all that matters. I just figure, honesty might help us to both feel better. Maybe we’ll stop worrying what everyone else thinks and finally be able to move on together.”

“That sounds like- a lot, Y/N,” Rob replied.

“It’s scary, isn’t it? Honesty.”

“I had a hard enough time learning to be honest with you,” he said. “The thought of being honest about this entire thing to people we hardly know…”

“Yeah, scary as hell.”

“Maybe you’re right though. Maybe we owe it to people to be honest.”

“We don’t owe anyone anything,” you reminded him. “But we owe each other a chance to just… leave all of that behind.”

“So, how do you propose we do that?” He asked.

“I don’t know yet,” you said honestly. “And right now, I’d rather not worry about it. We just got for real married. Maybe we can just enjoy the moment for now and worry about the rest later.”

“Yeah, we’ll put it off for just awhile longer.”

“For now,” you said.

“I’m crazy about you, Y/N,” he said softly. “I knew I was the moment I met you.”

“So crazy about me that you married me,” you teased.

“I think it worked out though.”

“No regrets,” you smiled. “Not anymore.”

“I love you. I mean it.”

You reached up, caressing his face as you smiled at him. For the first time, you really truly believed him; and you also truly felt the same for him. No doubts, no confusion.

“I love you too.”

He grinned and placed his hand on your stomach, caressing your growing bump. In the moments of your actual wedding, you didn’t doubt him for a second. Right now, you didn’t doubt that he was going to be an amazing father no matter what. This was all you could ask for.

You were done blaming him and being angry at him for the way he so carelessly handled things. You couldn’t hate him for the way he spilled about the entire charade that the two of you had put on. All you could do was be honest about your love for him, and accept his love for you.

Every couple had their faults and issues. Maybe yours were a lot more complicated than most, but they were your things that you would work through.

Still, you knew you certainly didn’t have the answers on how to repair the damage that had been done by his admittance to your accidental marriage. You figured people were already really talking now that everyone probably knew about today. Maybe it didn’t matter what people had to say anymore, but you still knew that you had to face it eventually. You’d both have to face your mistakes and unfortunately, that meant you’d have to do so publicly just because of your jobs.

For now though, you allowed yourself to just bask in this newlywed bliss with your real husband and your already growing family. No one else had to understand it.


End file.
